Police warn shoppers to stop delivery at their doorstep and use click and collect after thousands of parcels are stolen

A pandemic of PARCEL thefts has prompted police to warn shoppers to forgo door-to-door delivery and click and collect instead.

Packages left outside the house opportunists are easily earned, especially in the run-up to Christmas.

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Thousands of deliveries are believed to be going astray, with little hope of recovering them. The situation is so bad that police forces across the country are issuing warnings.

In Camden, North London, police advise forgoing home deliveries altogether, saying: “Choose click and collect so you can pick up your parcel from a safe location”.

Nearly a billion parcels will be delivered to your door between now and December 25 – with Royal Mail set to distribute 500 million alone.

Amazon, DPD and Hermes drivers areRace to drop a gift each 150 seconds.

It usually means that precious parcels are left on doorsteps and driveways.

Even those left with neighbors are difficult to locate as motorists may be reluctant to leave notes because of Covid fears.

Hundreds of victims took to social media to complain about the thefts. Roger Pluck of Harlow, Essex, has begun a campaign to find his Hermes parcel.

“It’s time for the company to start taking complaints seriously,” he said.

Pack Send’s research found the Thames Valley to be the hardest hit area.
Deputy Sheriff Amanda Blakeman, of the National Council of Sheriffs, said the pandemic has likely made matters much worse.

“With stronger motivation to shop online, it gave the thief an opportunity to target the parcels.

“But this type of crime is preventable and we ask everyone to do all they can to prevent this crime from happening.”