There is a Facebook group for people who live in my building and two recent posts were from people asking if other had seen their FedEx packages that had been delivered to their door. FedEx had sent them pictures of the package in front of their door but when the resident checked, both packages were gone.
I found one of the packages in one of the stairwells. The box had been opened and the contents were gone. It was clear that both their packages were stolen. This isn’t the first time packages have been stolen in my building and it won’t be the last. What is interesting is that these packages were taken from directly in front of a resident’s door. First, it’s alarming that whoever is taking these packages has access to certain floors. Every floor is supposed to be secure and can only be accessed via fob in the elevator. The only exception are the crossover floors which can be access via the stairwells. One of the packages was not located on a crossover floor, so how they got access is a mystery. Second, this thief appears to have realized that the mailroom has cameras and is much busier than say a typical residential floor is. There unfortunately no cameras in the residential hallway floors like there are in the common areas.
This is just a reminder that it is much safer and secure to have your packages sent to a drop-off point. Depending on who you are buying from or what shipping company they use, this can be a Canada Post outlet, UPS Store, or some authorized shipping outlet. These places require an ID, which thieves won’t have. Personally, there isn’t really any excuse for me. Amazon packages can be sent to a Canada Post outlet, which is just downstairs for me. I also have a UPS Store located just five minutes away by foot.
I know it’s tempting to have it conveniently delivered to your door or the mailroom downstairs but unless you can pick up your package immediately, it tempts fate.