Tips to protect your holiday packages from 'porch pirates'
NORFOLK - As the holiday season approaches, many turn to online retailers and the convenience of home delivery.
However, many packages are stolen from porches and entryways before the owner ever gets home.
Cambridge, for example, has more than 100 packages reported stolen this year. And that number is likely low due to underreporting. Police in Cambridge are warning residents to track their packages and get them inside as quickly as possible. By Friday morning, one house on Chauncy Street already had a package stolen.
"Sounds kind of scary," said one neighborhood resident. "Neighborhood tends to be pretty save. Pretty wild that people are stealing packages."
Norfolk Police Chief Timothy Heinz said that those who want to order online should take precautions to keep their packages safe. He offered some tips from the National Neighborhood Watch:
- Consider getting a P.O. box at your local post office or having packages delivered to your office
- Set up notifications to track your packages
- Install a security camera in the area outside your home where packages may be delivered
- Require a signature upon delivery to ensure packages are never left unattended
- Reschedule delivery or ask for a package hold when on vacation
- Research potential home security technology and locking device options to protect and monitor packages
- Ask your neighbors to grab your packages for safekeeping until you return home
- Sign up for the United States Postal Service "Informed Delivery" service, where you can get a daily email with a picture/scan of the mail you will receive that day.
Also, some large companies, like Amazon, offer hub lockers, central lockers where packages are stored until people can pick them up.
However, if you believe a package is stolen, check with the delivery company to make sure the package was delivered. If your package was delivered and is now missing, contact your local police department and the carrier that delivered your package. Also, if you have a security camera, give a copy of the video to the police.
