Posted on 11/22/2021 2:42:17 PM PST by nickcarraway
‘Tis the season for porch pirates. When online shopping deliveries increase for the holidays, so do the number of porch pirate thefts. Porch pirates are thieves who steal delivered packages from other people’s porches.
You see it happen all over social media, as victims post videos of porch pirates in the act.
“I noticed the Ring doorbell that a lot of people have was showing video after video after video of people stealing packages off porches,” said Scott Ryan. Those videos are what lead Ryan to take action. “I built what I call the Amazon Wall,” he said.
The wall is a hiding place on the front porch for packages, which is especially important at this time of year as holiday deliveries ramp up.
“My door is very exposed, so I thought, let me help myself and Amazon and UPS and all the deliveries I get to have somewhere to put it where it doesn’t tempt people, because people walk by all day long,” Ryan said.
Ryan explained to CBS4’s Ted Scouten that it’s actually quite easy to build.
He shared pictures with CBS4 which show his home before the wall and how it didn’t provide any safe spot to hide packages.
Then, he shared pictures of how he built the wall. He started by sinking wooden posts about a foot into the ground.
Then he covered the front with horizontal boards.
He repeated this process by adding another post, and more boards until construction of the L-shaped wall was complete.
He added a few final touches, including topping the wall with a flower box, and applyed a dark stain to make it fit in with his home. The whole project took him just 2 days.
Once complete, he was left with a wooden wall, painted to blend into his home that provides protection from his delivered parcels.
Meanwhile, BSO Cooper City is taking a novel approach to avoid becoming a victim, called “Operation Front Porch.”
Cooper City residents can have their packages delivered to the BSO sub station.
“They can ship their packages directly to the Cooper City police station, BSO Cooper City. And we will hold your packages safely for you. Our lobby is open 24/7 365,” said Capt. Chris De Giovanni.
To avoid being a victim, detectives suggest you ask a trusted neighbor for help.
“You can make sure sometimes they deliver it to a neighbor who may be home or you can install a Ring camera so you know when the package is delivered so you can call someone to pick up that package, a good neighbor, good friend,” Capt. De Giovanni said.
Miramar police provided these additional tips:
Have packages delivered to your workplace, if possible.
Have packages delivered to a neighbor or family member who will be there to accept them.
Make sure you have the tracking information for your packages and monitor it. If your packages do not arrive as scheduled, contact the sender immediately.
If available, request a signature delivery option. This will require the delivery driver to obtain a signature or deliver the package at another time.
Request a specific drop-off time and date from carrier, if possible.
Arrange to have your packages held at the delivery service site for pick up.
Ask the delivery service to leave your packages by the side/back door or enclosed porch where packages are out of sight.
Amazon offers several ways to keep on eye on packages.
It has Order Tracking which allows customers to track their packages through the Amazon app after they have placed their order. The company will also provide a 2-4 hour estimated delivery window to help customers plan their day. There is a Map Tracking feature that lets customers view the progress of their delivery on a map in real time when the driver is close. Customers can also share tracking details with friends or family via Amazon Share Tracking, and there is a Photo-On-Delivery feature which provides visual delivery confirmation, showing customers that their package was safely delivered and where.
Amazon also provides Key In-Garage Delivery, a service that allows eligible Amazon Prime members to securely receive deliveries into the safety of their garage. The company also provides a network of package pickup and return locations including Lockers, a secure and self-service pickup and return kiosk at locations including Whole Foods Market stores, 7-Eleven, LA Fitness, Ross, and more. It offers Counter pickup which allows customers to pickup up packages at small to medium sized business as well other companies including Rite Aid, GNC, and Health Mart pharmacies. And there’s Locker+, a secure, Amazon staffed pickup and return location with associates and self-serve kiosks.
my friend has something like that, but many delivery people still leave packages on the door mat
I have to go to the Post Ofiice to pick them up. Which is always a PITA.
Solution? Amazon Lockers. They are everywhere. Most are accessible 24/7.
So if anyone has a problem with porch pirates - have your stuff sent to a locker.
Now everyone will know to check for fake planters.
So glad I moved to a rural area.
there’s a few Youtube channels about porch pirates getting caught. One of them was the owner came out with a shotgun lol and the other was the guy chased the 2 porch pirates around the neighborhood.
Private mailboxes are all around here in Hollywood for actors etc. and they’re cheap. Safe against porch pirates and my GF uses the 7-11 Amz lockers. The issue is every 7-11 here is the amount of homeless around the stores..
Or look under a door mat for a key.
Potted plants can provide cover.
Bkmk
You could get the packaged if you wanted, but you were going to have to work for it.
If they don’t leave the packages on the mat, how are you supposed to trip over them?
I keep a UPS store box.
How is doofus AMZN driver supposed to take the pic of him shoving the package through the slot (which is amazingly thin -- if he orders anything more than razors it is going on the porch). Agree with all previous posts that AMZN dropboxes are solid secure.
I think a good sized wooden box is about the right idea and put a spring loaded flip door at the top and ramp in it so that the boxes can slide down without being all bashed up. Then put one way spikes on the ramp all pointed the same way... the packages can slide down but if an idiot actually climbed in to steal a package, they’d never be able to get back out. Or better yet, have it slide down a ramp into a locked basement area... assuming the house has a basement.
Or just have a door with a coded lock... the delivery person has to call when arriving and you can give the code over the phone and even watch as the package is placed inside and then the door locked up. Then change the code for the next delivery. Would delivery people do that in the interest of
Checking for fake planters takes effort. Thieves like to cruise by and see if there’s a package from the comfort of their car.
A coal shute.
I also live in a gated community and I've never had a problem getting packages delivered right to my front door from all three of the delivery services.
We have cluster mailboxes outside the gate. So USPS never comes in the gate. FedEx will, Amazon will, UPS will. But not the post office.
There are large lockers in these cluster mailboxes that packages can fit in and the key will be put inside your mailbox. But USPS Service where we live is poor and inadequate and they have just about given up on delivering packages even to the cluster mailboxes. So they just leave it at the post office.
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