Crooks are expected to use the surge in Black Friday and Christmas deliveries to brazenly steal items from outside people’s homes
More than £666million worth of parcels were pinched by “porch pirates” in the past year, research claims.
A survey found 17% of households have had at least one item stolen from their doorstep in the past 12 months, nearly a third higher than the previous year. It says that would suggest, nationally, around 4.8 million households have fallen prey.
Yet the research, by technology company Quadient, indicates it is a hugely under reported crime. Using Freedom of Information requests, it claims just one in every 353 parcel thefts are reported to police.
The average value of each parcel taken has also risen, from £102 to £138, a survey by Quadient found. It estimates the cost of the crime wave was £666.5million in the year to June, up dramatically from £290million in the previous 12 months.
Video footage supplied via Quadient shows two recent alleged incidents in Greater London. One shows a person appearing to take a parcel – that turned out to be headphones delivered by Amazon – from outside a house, but then leaving another item altogether. In the other someone in a seemingly identical coat is filmed apparently putting a package into a carry bag and walking off.
The second householder said: “My parcel was delivered while I was on a work call from home. I thought I’d bring it in after the meeting, but it was taken within the hour.
“Seeing the thief on camera was infuriating — I wanted accountability. Sharing the footage on our neighbourhood app felt more useful than calling the police, as I wanted to warn others this is happening. The inconvenience of contacting Amazon, especially when I’m a busy single working mum and time is precious, just made me even more annoyed.”
In 2021, TV and radio presenter Jeremy Vine shared CCTV footage of someone stealing his parcel from the designated safe place on his porch. He took to his Twitter page to share the moment the unknown person approached the specific area where his parcel was hidden.
While December remains the peak month for opportunistic thieves, November continues to be the second busiest month for parcel theft, likely driven by Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.
Quadient’s survey reveals households are increasingly switched on to the threat, and are taking steps to thwart the thieves. Nearly two thirds of those questioned say they would feel more comfortable using secure parcel lockers or collection points instead of doorstep delivery. An even higher number said they would prefer to miss a delivery entirely rather than risk having their parcel stolen. Almost eight in 10 believe the police should take parcel theft more seriously.
Jeremy Vine shares CCTV of thief stealing parcel from his doorstep
The police supplied data revealed Leicestershire was the hotspot for doorstep thefts, with 799 reported incidents in the year to June, followed by Hertfordshire (767), and Kent (750).
Katia Bourgeais-Crémel from Quadient, whose tech provides smart parcel lockers, said: “Parcel theft has risen dramatically in the past year, and with the busiest delivery season approaching, the message from consumers is clear: they don’t want packages left on their doorsteps anymore. With UK households losing an estimated £666.5 million to parcel theft in just 12 months, with many of these thefts taking place in broad daylight, the findings make a clear case for making secure parcel lockers the norm, not the exception.”
Gary Winter, also from Quadient, had this advice: “If you think your parcel has been stolen, contact the retailer you bought it from in the first instance. You have the relationship with them, and they then have the relationship with the carrier. Collect any evidence you can – particularly doorbell-cam or CCTV footage if you have it.
“In most instances, the retailer will send a replacement item where possible, but if there are persistent issues in an area, they may want to carry out a fuller investigation first. Finally, inform the police and get a crime number. Too many thefts go unreported, because of the way retailers simply replace stolen goods, so the scale of the issue is never fully understood.
“Porch piracy is not a victimless crime. Ultimately, we all pay for the cost of retailers having to replace stolen items, often in the form of higher prices for the purchases we make.”
