Police warn residents to be vigilant amid rising cost of delivery thefts
A report obtained by the Retail Insight Network through the Freedom of Information Act (2000) to UK police forces revealed that the cost of parcel thefts has risen to £376.6 million over the past year.
The average value of a stolen parcel has surged from £66.50 in 2023 to £102 in 2024—a 52% increase.
Ahead of the busy holiday season, last month St. Mark’s and Seething Wells Police posted an advisory on X (formerly Twitter) to alert residents about the increase in parcel thefts, urging them to be vigilant.
They further added separately: “We do our best to nip things in the bud before they become a bigger issue.”
Police advice includes tracking deliveries, installing video doorbells, arranging deliveries to trusted neighbours or using off-site locker services to reduce the risk of parcel theft.
Berrylands resident, Andrew Nightingale, said he tries to find ways to avoid the threat of theft. He said: “I just get everything delivered to my local pickup point and collect it from there.”
Rosie Owen, a resident of Longwead, said the issue was one for delivery firms to solve. She said: “The owners of these courier companies say they don’t have to be handed to a person, just leave (them) on the doorstep and take a picture, that’s not okay especially (at) this time of the year.”
Robert Tyler, a resident of Surbiton, highlighted concerns about the working conditions of couriers and the impact of subcontracting on delivery standards. He said: “Talking to a former courier the rates paid have been reduced to 40p or 50p per item from £1 plus.
“This is to do with the delivery companies now sub-contracting out to small companies creating a price war.”
Helen Trotman, a resident of Kingsnympton Park, expressed frustration over her parcel being delivered to the wrong address.
She explained that the delivery company provided a photo as proof of delivery, but the door in the image was not hers, leaving her to dispute the issue with Evri.
As one of the major delivery firms, Amazon was contacted for comment on how they are addressing this growing issue, but did not respond.
