A method for conveying message origination information in a selective call receiver comprises selectively receiving a message (300) intended for the call receiver (140). The call receiver (140) identifies if the message received is flawed (302). In response to determining that the message is flawed, the selective call receiver (140) extracts origin information which has been appended to the message (306). The selective call receiver applies the origin information to a look-up table (308) in order to report more detailed information to the subscriber (310) indicating who the subscriber may contact to obtain the complete message.