The number of package thefts is difficult to estimate. Not all of them are reported to the police or the delivery company’s customer service. Police were unable to provide a number because they do not have a specific category for listing this type of theft. As for online sales companies and Canada Post, those that responded to our requests did not wish to disclose the number of package thefts reported by their customers.
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Aurélie, who did not wish to give her last name, says that her package delivered a few days before Christmas was stolen in front of her home. On vacation outside of Montreal, she asked a friend to pick up her package, but by the time the friend in question arrived at the home, the package was no longer there. Not enough to spoil her Christmas, but she doesn’t hide being disappointed.
On the other hand, the disappointment was great for Guillaume Gorini. He says that two years ago, this Montreal photographer had ordered a new “very expensive” camera through Amazon at the end of the year, but his package, upon delivery, was exchanged with another. “I then delivered this package to the correct address, hoping to receive my camera, but it was not there,” he laments. I immediately filed a complaint with Amazon customer service and the contracted delivery company. An internal investigation was opened, but I never heard back.”
Finally, Amazon refunded him in full and he placed a new order, asking to “hide the shipment”. “This time everything went well, but the experience was quite shocking and stressful. In our building, if no one answers the intercom, delivery people sometimes leave packages outside, which can lead to people going missing.”
On social networks too, there were numerous publications reporting package thefts in December, some even attaching the photo or video of the theft, recorded by video doorbell devices. Stéphanie Harvey is one of these Internet users. She published photos in the “Info à Lachine” group of a theft in front of a home on Saint-Joseph Boulevard which took place “literally seconds after the FedEx delivery.”
Techniques that are refined
Austin Stowe, a spokesperson for Amazon, said in an emailed statement: “While the vast majority of deliveries reach customers without issue, we are aware that there are bad actors out there who wear clothing that looks like our product. uniform and steal packages from our customers. We encourage anyone who has been a victim of theft to report the crime to the police and we will work with law enforcement to help wherever possible.”
In an interview, Mr. Stowe specifies that package theft techniques have evolved, and thieves “have adapted.” “We see more and more people wearing outfits that imitate the Amazon uniform as closely as possible,” he continues. (…) This is why we strongly encourage customers, if they think they are dealing with a person wearing a fake uniform, to contact the police.
The spokesperson says he cannot specify what an authentic Amazon delivery person is supposed to look like, because he does not want to give information that would allow thieves to refine their deception. Above all, he advises customers to locate their parcel in real time and to indicate to the delivery person “a hidden drop-off location so that the parcels are not visible”. He adds, among other things, that customers have the possibility of having it delivered to places they frequent and which are part of the Amazon network, to pick-up locations, or simply to their work.
However, the December flight was not the first time that this type of mishap had happened to Aurélie. She had already had a professional package delivered to her work stolen. It had been left in the lobby of the building. “It was a customer’s package. She asked me: ‘Didn’t you find a package delivered this morning?’ It was around 12 p.m. and the package had been delivered at 10 a.m. She had received the photo of the package, but it was no longer there.
For his part, a Canada Post spokesperson indicates in an email that customers “who believe they have not received an item should contact the sender.” Philipe Legault also specifies that people who think a package is missing should contact Canada Post Customer Service. Mr. Legault assures that, subsequently, Postes will carry out an investigation and will collaborate “if possible” with the sender, “who can submit a complaint to us. People should also contact the sender to request that the package be reshipped or obtain a refund.
However, Aurélie has chosen not to seek a refund or return her Christmas package. She believes that, depending on the platforms, “it’s a lot of paperwork sometimes for, in any case, a package that will not necessarily be returned or refunded.” She also has no plans to change delivery systems, because that’s “what they’re offering. And then everyone is happy to have their package at the door, it’s much easier than going to pick it up in offices where you know they close at 5 a.m. or 6 a.m. But you, it’s your working hours, that means you can never go pick up a package.”
