'tis the season to be jolly, and pay for signed-for shipping!

I just finished filing a police report. My street was hit by a good soul who scoped the front porches and relieved them off the packages. He than threw the empty boxes in the nearby street. A resident there found them and returned them to me and my neighbors.
The police officer told me that it happens now and there during the year but during the holiday season it spikes considerably. The criminals gamble that all those packages on the front porches contain nice gifts.

Today's damage:
1 Cobra razor
1 box of diapers (246 count)
total damage roughly $200.

I live in a very safe town. Many times we neglect to lock our front door. During the summer my daughter's bike is on one of the neighbor's lawn and there are always a few bikes of other kids on my lawn.
The police officer told me that yes, my town is neat and safe, and burglars know that as well.

I think I have lucked out so far. When I was expecting a package that I knew was a signed-for, I used to leave a signed and dated note on my front door asking the courier to just leave it there. Yesterday alone I took delivery of very expensive cell phone. Not anymore.

Folks, I really recommend to pay the extra and also deal with the annoyance of waiting for the courier. It is a pain, but loosing a razor that you had your heart set on is even worse. It is what I am going to do from now on, or just have packages shipped to my work place.
At least during the holiday season.

Good advice even if it may be hard to follow. Very sorry about your Cobra. Maybe things will get better in the coming week. Hope it all works out.

That sucks man! I have everything shipped to my office since a lot of it does need to be signed for and I don't want to have to wait an extra day or two to pick it up or have it re-delivered. The other bummer is that there is very little you can do about it now. Even if the package was insured the post office stops assumption of liability once it leaves the mail carrier's hands. I hope you are able to get another Cobra and that you have enough diapers to last until your replacement order comes in.

This is a good reason for sellers to pay the couple of dollars to send the package signature require on higher dollar items. IMO of course.

Sorry bout the cobra

blzrfn said:

That sucks man! I have everything shipped to my office since a lot of it does need to be signed for and I don't want to have to wait an extra day or two to pick it up or have it re-delivered. The other bummer is that there is very little you can do about it now. Even if the package was insured the post office stops assumption of liability once it leaves the mail carrier's hands. I hope you are able to get another Cobra and that you have enough diapers to last until your replacement order comes in.

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Do you have a PO box, or is there another way to have packages delivered to one's post office?
I've been considering a PO box for a while, since I receive a lot of high value packages at my house.

I hate when UPS drop package by the house ! But what really irritate me is when they don't even bother ring the bell, when you are at home, and just drop it on the porch. At least, Purolator drop them at the local launderer.

I get a lot of deliveries to my home, business related and personal. After having a similar experience with a stolen package, I decided to become more friendly with my delivery men. My USPS postman will place packages by my back yard under the grill cover. He leaves a "tried to deliver" note on the door which discreetly means "check your grill". My FedEx man has access to my garage.

These things can help in a pinch when signature delivery verification is not an option. It means a little more in their Christmas Cards, but it is definitely worth it.

I've had a couple boxes go missing because despite leaving a note on my mailbox about not "safe dropping" under the mailbox, (its under some stairs beneath my balcony) the letter carrier still insisted on leaving my packages out in the open.

Now I get everything shipped to work.

conroygc said:

Do you have a PO box, or is there another way to have packages delivered to one's post office?
I've been considering a PO box for a while, since I receive a lot of high value packages at my house.

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UPS will not ship to a PO box. I think Fed Ex is the same.

Maxime D. said:

I hate when UPS drop package by the house ! But what really irritate me is when they don't even bother ring the bell, when you are at home, and just drop it on the porch.

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My UPS guy does ring the bell when dropping something off.

Many moons ago during the college years I worked for UPS during the holiday season. This is an uber high-volume time for them. The typical trucks are operating at 150-200% their normal capacity, plus they add several more add'l trucks to handle extra (check out your local truck rental place - they will have a notable lower inventory this time of year w/ UPS taking a lot of those trucks for overflow). I was taught to ring bell or knock on door when delivering, but I'm sure I didn't do it 100% of the time. It was fast-paced & crazy - very easy to overlook.

That sucks, man! I know for USPS, even if there's a signed note, we have to get a signature anyways, mainly because its difficult to make the system work differently. If they were USPS packages, let the USPS know that someone did that with them. While it doesn't fix the issue, the guilty party should get 5 years in federal prison per piece of mail the screwed with.

I have everything shipped to my work. Not everyone can do that though. So far my secretary has not stolen anything from me so it's working out alright.

Ben

Reading this thread makes me really appreciate the guys who work in the receiving room in my high rise. I sometimes forget how many hassles they save me. They sign for every package, and then bring it up to my apartment. They are working extra hard this season too, as there are over 500 units in this building. I gave each of them a very nice holiday tip, of course.

Nick

i don't blame the carrier or yourself, i blame the dirty rotten scoundrel that stole the packages. I hope he/she gets caught one of these days and is served a just punishment. Stealing is one of those things that just bruns me to death! Sorry it happened to you this time.

we've been fortunate - never had a left package stolen - but limited retrys on delivery of signed for items , usually high value , UPS or FedEx or both as I recall , & then you have to drive in the case of UPS to their delivery center - it's an hour away & sometimes I'd have to leave work early to get there b4 closing .

Well I certainly hope the scoundrel has a comeuppance some day. Nothing for it now but maybe it was insured?

One option I am looking at is acquiring a used parcel drop bin from an office building or other commercial entity that is undergoing a remodel. Many times this sort of stuff winds up in the dustbin when it is perfectly serviceable. I want this to handle all parcels from any carrier. As we who live in the States know, the USPS will NOT deliver mail or parcels to any container that is not specifically marked US Mail and conversely, the private carriers are forbidden to drop their parcels in such marked containers. This is called conundrum. A local postman once told me you can approach your local postmaster and discuss with him the option to designate a certain container on your property as a place to drop parcels even if it is not specifically marked US Mail.

From what I gather this is up to the postmaster. Some are okay with it and others are dead set against it. And this was pre-9/11 so who knows with all the new postal regulations? His sense of it was you needed to provide some sort of notarised letter of consent to the PM, describe the container and where it was located(hint, the drivers are not going to walk a quarter mile to drop your parcels in a bin hidden in the notch of a hollow tree in the old oak grove), and I believe the container has to be marked for such things. It may be worth an inquiry to your local PM. It won't help the OP but may be helpful for others. Again, sorry to hear of your losses. It always seems to make the world a little less livable when this happens.

Cheers, Todd

Galhatz - I was very sorry to read of your recent experience. Your "giving" to someone that seemingly was in greater need that you - and your sense of trust - certainly puts you on my nice list. I have no diapers as the elves outgrew them long ago, but I was recently visiting the Island of Misfit Toys and I believe I saw a package with your name on it. Please get it touch at your earliest convenience. It has been many years since I made a delivery specifically for you, and cannot recall exactly where you live in Northern California.

Kris Kringle

Kris_Kringle said:

Galhatz - I was very sorry to read of your recent experience. Your "giving" to someone that seemingly was in greater need that you - and your sense of trust - certainly puts you on my nice list. I have no diapers as the elves outgrew them long ago, but I was recently visiting the Island of Misfit Toys and I believe I saw a package with your name on it. Please get it touch at your earliest convenience. It has been many years since I made a delivery specifically for you, and cannot recall exactly where you live in Northern California.

Kris Kringle

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Oh man, he does exist.

I think my wife can testify that it is a very rare occasion where I am found lost for words...

Mr Kringle, I didn't really expect this...

Again... lost for words...