# Packages (UPS, etc) on door steps
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [May 30, 2017, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738 "2017-05-30T21:49:50Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@2Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2Bits)
#### Post date: [May 30, 2017, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/1 "2017-05-30T21:49:50Z")
Why aren’t they stolen with regularity?
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### Author:  [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)
#### Post date: [May 30, 2017, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/2 "2017-05-30T21:51:31Z")
Most people aren’t jerks.
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### Author:  [@Karen\_Lingel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Karen_Lingel)
#### Post date: [May 30, 2017, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/3 "2017-05-30T22:02:02Z")
Mine are. I can’t have packages delivered to my house any more.
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### Author:  [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)
#### Post date: [May 30, 2017, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/4 "2017-05-30T22:06:18Z")
Because if you walk away from an entryway carrying a package, there’s a good chance someone will see you and call the cops. Especially if the neighbors know who live there.
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### Author:  [@ReticulatingSplines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReticulatingSplines)
#### Post date: [May 30, 2017, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/5 "2017-05-30T22:08:03Z")
I live in the SF Bay Area and they ARE stolen with some regularity.
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### Author:  [@drewder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewder)
#### Post date: [May 30, 2017, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/6 "2017-05-30T22:09:19Z")
The vast majority of people are not criminals and wouldn’t steal a sack of money if they saw it.
Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
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### Author:  [@somepumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/somepumpkin)
#### Post date: [May 30, 2017, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/7 "2017-05-30T22:35:06Z")
No one knows what’s in the box. It’s not worth a criminal record for a chance at 3x towel rods.
And a pair of brake drums is just too heavy to carry around with only a hope that you can cash them in.
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### Author:  [@ReticulatingSplines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReticulatingSplines)
#### Post date: [May 30, 2017, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/8 "2017-05-30T22:43:37Z")
> [@somepumpkin](#):
>
> No one knows what’s in the box. It’s not worth a criminal record for a chance at 3x towel rods.
Yeah, but it’s not always random. If you go steal packages the day the new iPhone or game console launches, you will almost certainly have a lucrative day. Assuming you don’t get caught.
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### Author:  [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)
#### Post date: [May 30, 2017, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/9 "2017-05-30T23:45:54Z")
> [@ReticulatingSplines](#):
>
> I live in the SF Bay Area and they ARE stolen with some regularity.
There is apparently (at least) one car in my SF neighborhood that follows the delivery vans around and scarfs up some of the packages. They’ve been caught on security video but the car is nondescript with a fake dealer plate and the people are not really identifiable either. Finally, this kind of petty crime is so low priority that the police don’t have the staffing to do anything about it. One of the delivery companies has taken to using unmarked trucks for their deliveries, but I’m not sure if that is helping. They seem pretty obvious even without the markings.
I make use of the UPS utility that tracks the packages and notifies me by email when they have been delivered. Very useful, since often the UPS driver doesn’t bother to actually ring the bell. USPS delivery is much more conscientious about these things.
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### Author:  [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/10 "2017-05-31T00:28:19Z")
It also depends a lot on the area. In a giant city like SF or NYC, I imagine that it would be a low priority for the police. But in my town (a smaller suburb of a ~half million person metro area), someone following delivery vans scarfing up packages would be precisely the kind of thing the police department would jump on and talk about on their website and at their ‘here’s what we do for the community’ speeches.
I’m in a pretty nice neighborhood and I have bushes obscuring my front door so it’s especially not a worry for me.
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### Author:  [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/11 "2017-05-31T00:55:11Z")
I live one of the absolute safest cities in America (Franklin, MA). Crime isn’t really a thing here and the police take even petty property crimes extremely seriously. I have never had a package stolen but I have had them misdelivered in both directions. You just find the person that it was intended for and give it to them. It may delay it for a few days but it always shows up. Things may be quite different if you live in Detroit or Compton, CA.
Delivery companies, especially those in the Amazon network, expect some degree of loss due to theft, damage or misrouting. It is built into the pricing models but the customer generally doesn’t have to worry much about it. They will just send you another one if you don’t get it as long as you call customer service in a timely fashion. You can also have the charges blocked by your credit card.
The point about not knowing what is in the box is a good one though. The packaging is usually very generic. A random thief could make a quick grab only to find out that they are now the proud owner of a bunch of Glenn Miller CD’s and XXXL panties. You would have to know in advance what is in the box to target things that you could do anything with.
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### Author:  [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/12 "2017-05-31T01:16:42Z")
What’s in the box???
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### Author:  [@ASGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASGuy)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/13 "2017-05-31T02:04:49Z")
I too sometimes wonder about this. My front door stoop is easily visible from the street, so a package there is obvious. I have never had a theft when packages were left on the stoop. Often, if I do not answer a door summons, UPS, FedEx and the postal service will open my front door and leave the package inside my foyer. Safe from external view of course but somewhat of a domestic intrusion.
On the other hand, at least I live in an area where I can leave my front door unlocked (and often open) for such deposits. That’s a good thing about rural living.
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### Author:  [@Evan\_Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evan_Drake)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/14 "2017-05-31T02:13:34Z")
> [@drewder](#):
>
> The vast majority of people are not criminals and wouldn’t steal a sack of money if they saw it.
>
> Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
One person can make a difference, and everyone should try.
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### Author:  [@ReticulatingSplines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReticulatingSplines)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/15 "2017-05-31T02:56:08Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#):
>
> Finally, this kind of petty crime is so low priority that the police don’t have the staffing to do anything about it.
Yeah, that’s exactly what I hear. Sometimes people catch them on their Ring doorbells or security systems, but nobody really goes after them. Some of my neighbors have told me that they see people brazenly walk right out of stores with shoplifted items because they’re confident nobody will bother to prosecute, and store policy is not to confront shoplifters. Maybe Prop 47 is to blame, I don’t know.
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### Author:  [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/16 "2017-05-31T02:57:45Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#):
>
> What’s in the box???
[Nothing! Absolutely nothing!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GB7mHxdHlRY)
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/17 "2017-05-31T04:58:14Z")
> [@somepumpkin](#):
>
> No one knows what’s in the box. It’s not worth a criminal record for a chance at 3x towel rods.
Or a bobcat.
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### Author:  [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/18 "2017-05-31T05:23:17Z")
At my house, it would get you killed. All for dog treats.
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### Author:  [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/19 "2017-05-31T10:24:13Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#):
>
> The point about not knowing what is in the box is a good one though. The packaging is usually very generic.
Last year I ordered an expensive remote underwater video camera from an Amazon seller. It arrived in a beat up box with “old bicycle parts” scrawled on one side. Pretty clever I thought.
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### Author:  [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2017, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/packages-ups-etc-on-door-steps/787738/20 "2017-05-31T12:21:56Z")
> [@scr4](#):
>
> Because if you walk away from an entryway carrying a package, there’s a good chance someone will see you and call the cops.
Are you saying this is why _you_ don’t steal packages? Or just everyone else?
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