Delivery Items Being Stolen, Who Is to Blame?

DoUKnowTheMuffinMan on 04/12/2020 - 18:46
Last edited 11/12/2020 - 13:23 by 1 other user

Hi guys.

So I had recently moved home and in the last couple of months some of the deliveries from Australia post have been left on my front door while I’ve been at work and on two separate occasions the packages were not there when I arrived home. The first item was through Amazon and they resent without charge, the second item was not worth the follow up as it was only a few dollars.

I notified Australia post about this on both occasions and advised them to PLEASE leave a letter and I will go pick up the item from the post office after work as I've had items being stolen from my front door. (I live on a busy road where my front door is close to the footpath for everyone to visibly see)

I received a text message today from Australia post letting me know that my item had been delivered to my home address, while I was at work…. Again.

The item being the RM William boots from this recent deal I called the Australia post as soon as I received the text and asked them to please pick the item back up and take it to the Post Office because there was nobody home. They REFUSED because the item was already delivered.

Of course, I arrived home and there was no package at my door. I called Australia post back and explained the situation, the customer service representative said there is nothing they can do, and my best option is to contact the police and report a stolen parcel.

WHAT DO I DO????
WHAT CAN I DO????
WHO DO I CHASE FOR THIS? EBAY? PAYPAL? AUSTRALIA POST?

P.S. The customer service representative told me that the delivery driver is required to take a picture of the item, when it is left on the property in a “safe place” but he did not upload any photo after delivery.

******************************UPDATE**********************************

Followed up with Australia Post and received confirmation today, they will be processing a refund as they have "lost item in transition". I am assuming this means the package never arrived at my doorstep.

Thanks everyone for the information and feeback!

Poll Options expired

  • 299
    Continue to fight Australia Post is my best option
  • 14
    Contacting Paypal is my best option
  • 8
    Contacting Seller on eBay is my best option
  • 176
    You have no chance of getting your boots or money back.
General Discussion

Comments

  • PissLUR on 04/12/2020 - 18:52
    +17

    try paypal and seller. AP is useless.

    • mskeggs on 04/12/2020 - 19:14
      +10

      This is very subjective. My parcel postie is great, and even poor ones before have been able to be educated with some persistence.
      To be fair, my problem is the opposite, we are uphill from the road, so tempting to just leave a ticket.

      • PerthectDeal on 08/12/2020 - 03:55

        I know the feeling, our last place we lived the post office was a good 15 mins drive away. I remember the doorbell going and running as fast as I could and seeing the delivery truck driving off - I swear the guy filled in the card then done the doorbell and drive off.. Cost more in fuel collecting than the goods on some cheap ozbargain deals.
        Where we are now the post office is a few min walk away and open to 6pm so I dont mind the card to collect.

    • monkeyfood on 05/12/2020 - 20:51
      +19

      paypal will punish the seller when its not their fault

      • ladybug1 on 06/12/2020 - 17:28
        +6

        But it also isn’t OP’s fault and he is being punished. If AusPost do this enough, RM Williams will stop sending with them.

      • PainToad on 07/12/2020 - 09:17
        -7

        paypal will punish the seller when its not their fault

        They chose to run an online store. This is the risk that comes from the business and choosing Aus Post. They can't just profit from their business and not accept the risks and consequences as well.

        • roozmik on 07/12/2020 - 10:24
          +7

          Seller shouldn't have to wear the cost just because they have an online business.

          OP knows his place isn't great for deliveries but chooses to buy things and get them delivered there anyway? Not blaming OP here as such, but I would say OP would have to take more responsiblity than the seller in this case.

          Get things delivered somewhere else.. parcel locker, at your work place, at your parents place, or that Eufy delivery box & security cams.

          • PainToad on 07/12/2020 - 11:50
            +4

            @roozmik:

            OP knows his place isn't great for deliveries but chooses to buy things and get them delivered there anyway?

            If there's no safe place to leave a package and no one's home, the posty is not meant to leave it and take it to the local Post Office. If the posty did leave is some where that could get stolen, clearly the posty did the wrong thing.

            The buyer has no business relationship with Aus Post, therefore, it is the sellers problem to resolve. What should happen:
            1) Refund buyer/send again
            2) Seller raises this with Aus Post
            3) Seller get the compensatation agreed upon between the sellers and Aus Post's.

            If there's no insurance or agreement in place between the seller and Aus Post and step two and three leads no where, that's no the buyers problem in any way. The seller should of planned for and factored circumstances like this occurring, or not offer that shipping method.

          • modiika on 07/12/2020 - 12:16
            +1

            @roozmik: Seller should have an option where you can choose not to have the item left without signature.

            Australia Post is also not supposed to leave the item unless safe to do so, they've also been requested not to, and the driver also did not follow their own policy of taking a photo. It's Thief's fault, then Aus Post, then Seller, then buyer.

            • roozmik on 07/12/2020 - 16:51
              +4

              @modiika: Why do people get things posted to their place if they know full well it's not safe and they aren't going to be home because they work??

              As I mentioned and a lot of others have also, there are multiple options for people nowadays.

              If you choose to put your address on the parcel, you're just:

              • wasting the posties time if you want them to knock on the door, see if anyone is home, then give you a slip and return it to the post office
              • risking it getting stolen if the postie happens to leave it there (but then you can come on here and have a whinge).
          • harthagan on 07/12/2020 - 21:14
            +1

            @roozmik: Agreed. Seller is not at fault. It's obviously Australia Posts fault but the buyer realised that this is an issue and still continues to make online purchases with his address being the nominated delivery address regardless. Then complains when nothing changes.

            Here's a free tip, stop ordering things to be delivered to your place when you know you won't be home.

        • The-Kremlin on 08/12/2020 - 00:16

          LoL…I'm sure you're not a business owner…I wonder if the owners of the business who employ you found out about your attitude toward businesses…

    • morse on 06/12/2020 - 03:58
      +13

      I agree. This will be an unpopular opinion as it’s not the sellers fault, but you paid for the goods and delivery. The photo of the delivery wasn’t taken, so there’s no evidence it was delivered. The seller needs to take it up with Australia post, and may even have insurance for this kind of thing. This might not be the nicest option, but it’s your best chance of getting a replacement or refund.

      • Aneurism on 06/12/2020 - 20:19
        -3

        Seller should account for insurance in their fees to avoid losing out in situations like this.

        • PainToad on 07/12/2020 - 09:19

          Exactly. See so many sellers try to claim they aren't responsible for lost deliveries. So scummy and doubt it's legal. This is another reason I almost exclusively use Amazon Price now. Great customer service. Not like the snakes that lurk on eBay.

        • roozmik on 07/12/2020 - 17:02

          so you do understand that if all sellers did this, the price of everything YOU buy will get jacked up too?
          (even if you're always home to receive the deliveries, can get things sent to your work, or use a parcel locker, etc..)

  • Hithere on 04/12/2020 - 18:53
    +140

    Get yourself a parcel locker for security.

    Once the package has been delivered you're on your own.

    • argonide on 04/12/2020 - 19:16
      +63

      If you don't have a parcel locker nearby, you can also create a Parcel Collect address which is your local post office and get parcels sent there.

      • Godric on 04/12/2020 - 19:47
        +4

        I do this sometimes, I have a PO that is open on Saturdays so I go and collect then using Parcel Collect

      • ireadtermsofuse on 06/12/2020 - 09:15

        I do that all the time

      • PainToad on 07/12/2020 - 09:22
        +2

        you can also create a Parcel Collect address which is your local post office and get parcels sent there.

        Many Post Office are still open Monday - Friday 9 - 5. They still seem to think it's the 1960s and some house wife will be able to collect things between business hours and surely not everyone in a household will have a full time job.

        Australia Post needs to shutdown all the independent stores and replace them with corporate ones.

    • blimpyboy on 06/12/2020 - 14:09
      +20

      Once the package has been delivered you're on your own.

      But if the addressee never received the package, was it really delivered?

      I recently had a parcel declared by AusPost as "delivered", with the package nowhere to be seen. Of course AusPost insisted they delivered it. They even told me the exact date and time they delivered it, and insisted I must have misplaced it… until I explained to them that my building has 24-hour video monitoring, and that my security staff had checked the cameras for 2 hours on either side of the time they claimed the parcel had been delivered, and there was no AusPost employee near the building. At that point, AusPost magically "found" the parcel again, and delivered it the next day.

      This isn't the first time I've had a parcel mysteriously get "found" by AusPost after I was able to prove it wasn't delivered and they were at fault. So, maybe OP's parcels were stolen, or maybe they weren't even delivered? Either way, if OP's front door is in a busy area with easy public access, perhaps it's time to install some security cameras, to find out what's really happening?

    • Intoxicoligist on 06/12/2020 - 16:36
      +3

      Ok so I live on a busy main rd, my front door is 1.5m from the footpath, and the postie regularly leaves packages on my doorstep (or half obscured behind a small shrub, if you're walking on the path you'll see it). I've recently had a $200 parcel stolen from the front door (2L of 3D printing resin), and another one worth $80 (being resent thankfully). I've complained to AusPost about the $200 parcel and they have said it appears not to be a safe location, and are investigating further. I'm interested to see what happens next but its clearly not a safe place to leave parcels. I'm quite surprised its taken this long as its a regular occurance, but I've been working from home a lot recently and have been about a bit.

      Lets see what happens next.

      • OssieA on 06/12/2020 - 22:59
        +1

        Alternatively you can also attach a note, on your front door, advising couriers not to leave parcels as its not safe.

        • Headless on 07/12/2020 - 09:20
          +3

          They won't read it

          • OssieA on 07/12/2020 - 14:06
            +1

            @Headless: I know I did when i was a courier. Problem is most of these auspost couriers are contractors so they get paid by parcel delivered.

        • Intoxicoligist on 07/12/2020 - 13:00

          I agree that this would be a good option. In my defence though, it's pretty damn obvious it's not safe to leave parcels there, even the initial auspost rep said the same thing (parcels could clearly be seen from the footpath and road, no matter where left). I haven't had a response yet but we'll see how we go.

        • dizzle on 07/12/2020 - 19:41
          +1

          Although it's probably not the best idea to advertise to passer-bys that there is no-one at home :)

    • Somu on 07/12/2020 - 08:08
      +3

      Get one of these or the smaller ones.
      A parcel letter box for safe parcel deliveries. BUNNINGS also sell one.

      Ot like others said, get yourself an auspost parcel point registered.

      https://www.milkcan.com.au/product/795-grey/

    • Pratty on 08/12/2020 - 09:17

      This.

  • Ocker on 04/12/2020 - 18:55
    +11

    If the seller can provide proof of delivery to the address then PayPal and eBay will wash their hands of the matter.
    IF AusPost can prove the item was delivered then it will come down to a matter of common theft and Police will need to be involved.

  • ozhunter on 04/12/2020 - 19:05
    +12

    I called the Australia post as soon as I received the text and asked them to please pick the item back up and take it to the post office because there was nobody home. They REFUSED

    this made me lol

    You can redirect mail that is already in transit(up to a certain time). https://auspost.com.au/receiving/manage-your-mail/redirect-h…

    • Munki on 05/12/2020 - 21:17
      +4

      Not all parcel can be redirected. It depends on the shipping options the seller has used.

  • CyberMurning on 04/12/2020 - 19:05
    +11

    Amazing people still don't know about parcel locker

    • SimbaGirl on 04/12/2020 - 19:36
      +19

      Not so amazing if parcel locker apparently doesn't exist in your state. Try doing a search for Parcel Locker in Tasmania and there are zero results. None, Nada. Zip. Our nearest parcel lockers are apparently n Victoria LOL. It appears there used to be some in an Australia Post "superstore" opened in Launceston in 2012, and Google maps indicates these may still exist, so maybe they are still there, although the Australia Post website doesn't return any search results for Launceston parcel lockers. .

      • Quantumcat on 04/12/2020 - 20:51
        +7

        You can get a parcel collect address to any post office if there's no parcel locker nearby

      • Chazzozz on 04/12/2020 - 21:04
        +1

        If these exist in Launnie then I'd be very pleased to know where they are. I have stuff left on my front doorstep all the time, and although we've been very lucky not to have anything go missing (yet) anything left there is in plain view of every passerby. We actually have a postbox as well, but there are quite a lot of sellers who won't send to a PO Box address, so the only option is to give them a street address.

        • SimbaGirl on 05/12/2020 - 09:33
          +5

          We had the same issue when living in Perth (WA) - our letterbox and the front of our house were completely open to the street, nowhere safe to leave a parcel where it couldn't be seen (and stolen), and we had mail stolen from the letterbox as well (it was locked, but the postie would leave the letters hanging out the front of it, even thought there was plenty of room inside). As we were out at work most days, we got a PO Box at the local Post Office so our mail and parcels could be delivered safely, but then came across an increasing number of companies, organisations, eBay sellers etc who flatly refused to send to a PO Box, and we had no Parcel Lockers within 25km of our place either so that wasn't an option.

          • John Kimble on 05/12/2020 - 09:42

            @SimbaGirl: So what was your solution?

            • SimbaGirl on 05/12/2020 - 12:23
              +2

              @John Kimble: We finally ended up only buying from sellers who WOULD send to PO Boxes, or who used couriers who would take the parcel to the Post Office for collection if we weren't home, it was the only way we could be sure we'd actually get the parcels and they wouldn't be nicked from outside the front door.

              We moved to rural Tasmania a couple of years ago. We do get mail delivery but the postie doesn't deliver parcels of any size so pretty much anything bigger than an A4 envelope goes to the LPO which is only a couple of minutes away at a local store and we pick them up from there.

              • SimbaGirl on 05/12/2020 - 14:37

                @SimbaGirl: Oh, and having items delivered to work wasn't an option for us either - I worked in a large public hospital and my husband worked at a Government department, both of whom had become so fed up with their mailrooms having to handle increasing numbers of parcels coming in as personal deliveries for employees, including some really large items, that they completely banned ANY sort of personal mail being delivered to work at all.

          • t_c on 06/12/2020 - 10:27
            -1

            @SimbaGirl: "but then came across an increasing number of companies, organisations, eBay sellers etc who flatly refused to send to a PO Box"

            I think you worded this wrong,

            I did a little selling on eBay many years ago and the issue is not that sellers, companies or organisations refuse to send to PO Box's, it is rather Auspost who flatly refuse to allow deliveries to PO Boxes from anyone accept themselves or their own affiliate networks as it is part of their own internal network.

            • SimbaGirl on 06/12/2020 - 10:33
              +1

              @t_c: No, I didn't word it incorrectly. I can understand if sellers use courier services who will not/cannot take parcels to the Post Office if the recipient isn't home, but most were using Australia Post as the delivery method but would still state in their listings or on their websites that they would NOT send to a PO Box.

              There was even the ridiculous situation with a survey site which I participated on, and you could redeem the points earned for supermarket gift cards etc. They wouldn't use e-gift cards, and would only send out physical cards - even though they were sent as a normal letter, they refused to send them to a PO Box and would only post to a home address. After a gift card was stolen from our (locked) letterbox, I contacted them and explained the situation, but they still refused to send to a PO Box. They said it was for "security reasons"?????

            • OzJD on 09/12/2020 - 00:43

              @t_c: Organisations outside of AusPost can send to PO Boxes these days using the Suite address.

      • psylence on 05/12/2020 - 16:26
        +6

        Wow Tasmania has internet now??

        • SimbaGirl on 05/12/2020 - 19:31

          Hey, don’t laugh - when we moved from WA two years ago, we were still waiting on NBN in our suburb (which I think they eventually got about 18 months later) - when we got here, just about everywhere already had NBN, even in the rural areas.

      • Munki on 05/12/2020 - 21:19
        +4

        Australia Post.

        You'll get parcel lockers when you join the rest of us, island peasants.

      • ATangk on 06/12/2020 - 00:35

        Time to buy one of these
        https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0783MNRBP/

      • Krankite on 06/12/2020 - 21:33
        +3

        Op clearly isn't in Tasmania though as he mentions living on a busy road…

    • morse on 06/12/2020 - 04:12

      I stopped in Logan on a drive from Brisbane to the GC and had to use the servo bathroom. When I got in there, there was all this packaging from parcels from the nearby parcel lockers. One item that was discarded by the thief was a Christian book addressed to the nearby Koorong bookstore.

      TLDR - even parcel lockers get broken into.

      • Intoxicoligist on 06/12/2020 - 16:38
        +3

        I mean why steal off doorsteps when there's guaranteed to be a bunch of juicy parcels in the lockers? That's just smart thieving.

      • stickyfingers on 07/12/2020 - 00:10
        +2

        I stopped in Logan

        Enough said.

      • Cave Fire on 08/12/2020 - 13:47

        It has to be a badly secured location or the theft was after hours. Most that I have seen would be hard to get into as lot's of people around till "closing time".

        • morse on 09/12/2020 - 07:00

          Yeah, I thought the same thing. I’m not sure how they broke in. The location was fairly visible, but not many people around.

          Interestingly it appears this does happen from time to time, according to this ozbargainer at least www.ozbargain.com.au/node/448831/amp

    • skittlebrau on 07/12/2020 - 17:21

      Some online stores like Amazon don't exclusively use Australia Post unfortunately. I've also noticed some online retailers specify that they use Australia Post/Star Track for delivery, but then they end up using some other courier service.

  • mskeggs on 04/12/2020 - 19:12
    +10

    Who is responsible? The thieves.
    What can you do about it? Maybe a parcel locker or deliveries at work or a more secure location.
    It’s often possible to choose to redirect to the post office too.

    • bobbieb on 04/12/2020 - 19:33
      +6

      +1 to the Parcel Locker.

      If you know your delivery is coming via AusPost, use a parcel locker.

      The only downsides are I've experienced are:

      • You'll get an occasional parcel that will be too big or too small that will be routed to a post office for collection.
      • Some online sellers seem to go out of their way to not tell you which company they ship with, so I've been stung a few times when I've assumed AusPost (usually due to cheap or free shipping) then had to mess around redirecting a courier that has no arrangement to deliver to parcel lockers.
    • modiika on 07/12/2020 - 12:21
      +2

      I think while many people are trying to be helpful. I think parcel locker is such a cop out. I'd say the thieves were responsible, but also that Australia Post was negligent. It's not like they dont have another system, like picking it up from the post office.

  • ChocStrawberries on 04/12/2020 - 19:17
    +4

    Do you have room for one of those box storage seats at your front door? We have one, and the delivery drivers leave parcels in there. It wouldn't eliminate the chance of things being taken, but might remove some of the opportunity if the parcels can't be seen from the road. Just a thought!

    • elgrande on 04/12/2020 - 20:18
      +3

      Thanks was wondering where they were going..

    • John Kimble on 05/12/2020 - 06:57
      +1

      Thief: Oh sweet, free storage box! yoink

      • ChocStrawberries on 05/12/2020 - 08:40
        +1

        Haha! Of course they could steal the box too - hey, thieves will take anything if it's not bolted down (and sometimes, even if it is!) but it might just be enough to stop people walking past and seeing tempting parcels just sitting there in the open. I'd imagine it would take more planning (and raise more suspicion) to walk off down the street lugging a giant, heavy storage box than a shoe box-sized parcel. ;)

  • Digitalco on 04/12/2020 - 19:19

    So the best option is maybe get a parcel locker, or contact the seller to see if they can try and get it redirected to the post office. With the covid situation still happening delivery drivers are just dropping it off without actually getting the name.

  • raptormesh on 04/12/2020 - 19:28
    +1

    Hire a parcel locker to avoid future frustrations.

    • SnoozeAndLose on 04/12/2020 - 19:39
      +8

      Parcel locker is free

      • Munki on 05/12/2020 - 21:20

        Hire for free!

    • stickyfingers on 07/12/2020 - 00:11
      +1

      But what if the sender doesn’t use Auspost? It’s not always obvious which carrier they use until it’s sent.

  • pharkurnell on 04/12/2020 - 19:34
    +7

    You should feel privileged ….

    AP dont even usually get out of their car to see if your home… they usually already have the cards written up and throw them at your letter box.

  • kerfuffle on 04/12/2020 - 19:34
    +2

    PLEASE leave a letter and I will go pick up the item from the post office after work

    Just use Parcel Collect; problem solved.

  • FoxJump on 04/12/2020 - 19:35
    +5

    Glitter bomb?

    • DoUKnowTheMuffinMan on 04/12/2020 - 19:53
      +2

      Definitely

      • FoxJump on 04/12/2020 - 20:23
        +9

        I'm sure if you order a glitter bomb online - it'll be the only item that you get a card for.

        • CocaKoala on 06/12/2020 - 14:43
          +2

          You could leave a glitter bomb packed up outside the house. No need to "send it" through auspost.

      • CocaKoala on 06/12/2020 - 14:44

        Install a camera and make it obvious that everything is being recorded.

  • oscargamer on 04/12/2020 - 19:38
    +6

    Who is responsible?
    You.
    You are still having items delivered to a location that you know has had previous thefts.
    The address you put on the order is where it's going to go to. Regardless of what you say to Auspost. Is that too difficult to understand?

    • DoUKnowTheMuffinMan on 04/12/2020 - 19:52
      +25

      Considering I spoke to auspost and they told me it would be directed to the post office, I assumed, as most people would, that it wouldnt happen again…

      • Willco88 on 04/12/2020 - 19:53

        There are many different delivery persons involved

        • OssieA on 07/12/2020 - 14:16

          too many people in this thread who have no clue how logistics and middle manning works.

      • Quantumcat on 04/12/2020 - 20:54
        -2

        Why assume? That makes an ass of U and me.

        Just use a parcel collect address, and guarantee that it goes to a post office.

      • Jono05 on 05/12/2020 - 12:47
        +3

        Get the parcel delivered to your work.

    • MrFrugalSpend on 06/12/2020 - 10:00

      "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times, shame on both of us"

      • WeHaveRicePudding on 06/12/2020 - 13:02
        +2

        Fool me once, shame on … shame on you. Fool me… You can't get fooled again!

        • MrFrugalSpend on 06/12/2020 - 13:29

          the evidence would suggest some people can be fooled many times

  • SnoozeAndLose on 04/12/2020 - 19:41
    +4

    If you know that this is happening, you should send to your work, friend house, parcel locker or rent a Post office box.

    Or install a camera to catch who keep stealing your parcel?

    • DoUKnowTheMuffinMan on 04/12/2020 - 19:49

      Yes, Bought a camera, I haven't installed it yet

      • loropy9 on 04/12/2020 - 20:42

        Also put up a BIG sign with a picture of security camera and CCTV on it. Quite a deterrent for thieves, including the opportunistic ones.

        • nonparticular on 05/12/2020 - 20:02
          +7

          I'd put up a sign to tell the delivery guy to bring it back to the PO. Also warn him about items have been stolen when he left on the front door.

          Of course these people seem to do the opposite of your request. I'm at home during the pandemic & put up the sign to tell them to ring the door bell, big sign mind you. They wouldn't ring the bell, nor they leave items on my doors but bring them back to make sure I'd have some exercise walking to the PO.

      • cloudie9 on 06/12/2020 - 07:53
        +5

        Yup, install camera. Sometimes when postie dropped off my item, he will make a gesture waving down the item he dropped at the front porch, "its delivered, I'm telling ya!"

      • Save Medicare on 06/12/2020 - 22:19

        At least the camera wasn't stolen by porch pirates

  • Willco88 on 04/12/2020 - 19:49

    Yes definitely get parcel locker address to be safest. I've had parcels not delivered even when I was home…

    At least they left a card but still they didn't even bother to knock…

  • DrRalph on 04/12/2020 - 19:55
    -3

    You should not have provided an authority to leave the package. The moment you did this you've lost all hope.

    • User210686 on 04/12/2020 - 19:58
      +9

      Oftentimes the authority to leave option is automatically selected by the seller and the buyer can’t change that.

      • ozhunter on 04/12/2020 - 20:05
        -1

        Don't buy or put a parcel locker address.

        • scorpionsa on 04/12/2020 - 20:14
          +4

          Lots of places don't ship to parcel lockers (including funnily enough Australia Post themselves).

          • ozhunter on 04/12/2020 - 20:19

            @scorpionsa: Work or friends house? I mean it's not up to auspost to provide you with a safe delivery address.

            • DoUKnowTheMuffinMan on 04/12/2020 - 20:25
              +6

              @ozhunter: No but they are responsible for dropping the parcel is in a safe spot so that it is safely delivered…
              I mean say the parcel was too big to fit in your mail box, you wouldn't expect them to leave it on top of the mailbox instead would you ?
              Same thing goes for my residence, the front door is very close to the footpath of a very busy road.

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