With more people shopping online than ever before, it’s unsettling to know that porch pirates struck nearly 26 million Americans in 2017. UPS, USPS, Amazon and FedEx ship a combined total of 534.2 million parcels every day.
And with the holidays approaching, package theft is expected to rise.
But where you live can make a difference. More than half of the metropolitan areas where porch pirates strike the most are also high-tech hubs. California has the biggest porch pirate problem.
Los Angeles is rated number nine in a recent list of the top 10 metropolitan areas for package theft. Other cities on the list include San Francisco (#1); Salt Lake City; Portland; Baltimore; Seattle-Tacoma; Chicago; Austin; Denver; and the Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto area.
The San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose area has the most package theft in the nation for the second year in a row and a larceny-theft rate of 24.3 incidents per 1,000 people.
There are some steps you can take to get to the bottom of it, get reimbursed, track down the thief or scare them off before your package is stolen.
First, if you’re sure your package has been taken, file a police report. Without witnesses, police will not be able to do much, but they will take note of the incident. If others in your neighborhood report the same problems, police are more likely to investigate and find the thieves.
Filing a police report can also be useful if you try to make an insurance claim on the missing delivery.
Most of the time a missing package is something you ordered. In that case, you want to reach out to the seller and let them know that your package hasn’t been delivered.
Not every company will send a replacement item or refund your money. Be sure to hold onto any proof you have that can help support your claim, including your order confirmation number.
If the stolen package was sent from a friend or relative, let them know it hasn’t been delivered. They can reach out to the seller or the carrier to help figure out what happened.
If you have a doorbell camera or an outdoor security camera, use its footage as proof of delivery or theft. If an expected package is nowhere to be found, watch the footage to see if the carrier dropped off the package or if someone walked away with it.
Some cameras send instant alerts through apps and others simply record footage.
To thwart thieves, you may consider adding a motion-activated light to your porch. Some lights are combined with a security camera. This combination offers a bright deterrent and a way to catch the culprits in action.
