You'd hate to order the perfect holiday gift this Cyber Monday - or in the days afterward -- only to have it snatched by a porch pirate.
So we turned to one of the giants in the delivery business for ways to keep your packages safe after one man had an expensive delivery disappear after it was dropped off.
Package was dropped off and stolen in a couple of hours
Matthew Hubbard showed us the spot where he says a Grinch stole his Christmas.
"They put it right here in front of the straw bale," he said, pointing to a spot at the end of his driveway, at his Kenton County, Kentucky home.
He had ordered $300 worth of parts to repair his truck but says when the delivery arrived, he was visiting someone at a local hospital, and no one was home.
The delivery driver sent a text showing the package was indeed dropped off.
But, Hubbard said, "Within a 3-hour window it was gone."
For an idea of how widespread this problem is, the company Safewise estimates that 120 million packages were stolen from porches in 2023.
This holiday season, we checked with an Amazon spokesperson, Richard Rocha, for what the retail giant suggests you do to protect yourself
To start, he suggests shoppers tap into their real-time tracking tools.
"We provide a photo on delivery," he said, "so you can see exactly where the package was left."
If you are not going to be home, Rocha suggests you:
- Specify a hidden drop-off location around the house.
- Or, when possible, ship to an alternate location.
- And set up text alerts with Amazon or other retailers.
Use caution with text alerts these days
Rocha says text and email alerts are a great way to track packages.
But keep in mind that a delivery text may be fake.
The Better Business Bureau's Melanie McGovern reminds us that fake delivery alerts may contain fraudulent links.
"Everybody gets fake texts from USPS," she said, as well as from UPS, FedEx, and other services.
So she suggests you "keep track of everything so you know if you opted in for that text or if it's a scam."
If a package is stolen, she says:
- Report the theft to the police and the shipping company.
- Reach out to the retailer to see if the item can be replaced.
- Check if your credit card offers purchase protection.
Matthew Hubbard says his claim, which is not with Amazon, has gone nowhere.
"They just opened a case and closed it," he said,
And he now has less money for his family this Christmas.
"We work hard for our money and provide for our household, and $300 is a large hit in any circumstance," he said.
So don't let an unattended package sit outside for hours, so you don't waste your money.
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