I've had one too many delivered packages stolen from my front porch. I'd like to get some poison ivy, spread it on a box and leave it so that thugs will think twice before stealing something from the there again.
I'm having trouble finding a place to buy it and it's not practical for me to go hunting through the woods to find some.
Can anyone suggest a place to buy it. I've already notified FedEx not to leave packages, but UPS just does what they want, same for USPS.
How about those exploding ink bombs you hear about banks putting in bags of money for bank robbers?
Where I live poison ivy is free for the taking along the roadsides everywhere. It seems more common in recently disturbed areas, like along new roads & developments, than in established woods. It's a very opportunistic weed. Should be easy to find.
"Ken Underwood" wrote
Whoever it is, it's doubtful they will make the connection between getting poison ivy and stealing your stuff. Bet if you set up a camera, you'd find out it was one of your neighbors. At any rate, when you order stuff, try telling them to require a signature, this will make the delivery company responsible. Or, call the company and say your stuff never arrived, where is it? You bet they'd require a signature from then on.
nancy
I think your problem is likely with UPS anyway. When I first moved into my new house, UPS was batting about 50% as to getting me my packages - they just dropped them at whatever house they felt like. One day I came home and found a footlocker and duffel bag on my porch, addressed to someone about half a mile away. The package that I was actually expecting was nowhere to be found.
nate
The sending company is already responsible, unless you told them to leave the package without a signature. Many companies just take the risk, rather than paying the fee for a signature.
Ryan
Where do you live? I'll mail you some. I got PLENTY. Just send me a SASE (padded).
Just beware: booby traps - those that risk severe bodily injury or death - are double-sticky illegal. There could be any number of people who can enter your property without your knowledge or even permission: a child, a policeman with a lawful warrant, a firefighter, the person-person (nee "mailman"), etc.
I think that is a violation of UPS policy, and that if you insist, maybe even go to their office and fill out a form, send a copy to the central US location, maybe they'll pay attention.
I've never had anthing stolen but I wanted them to leave a sticker, they didn't even have to fill it in, just so I would know something had come even if it were stolen. I finally got one guy to do this, and then he was transferred from my route, or quit or something.
I've lost track of the USPS.
But what I did is, since I have a friend who runs a business, I have everything delivered to her. I think she has another friend who does this too. No problems in more than 5 years.
But I don't think the person would have to run one. If one worked in an office, a restaurant, anyplace wwhere they treated employees in a civilized manner, even if one was in a truck and not at the office, he might come back to the office at the end of the day. Just be friends with whoever receives the mail. Give him lots of thanks and a present once in a while
You can add another line, or put more info on an existing line of the mailing address. She doesn't like to use her last name when she doesn't have to, so I have in PayPal for example,
MM c/o Nancy Fancy Tropical Fish Co. rest of address.
YOu can use your wife's friends, your brother, etc.
There was one problem just last month that an ebay guy addressed it to the wrong street number, one digit off, that would have been about a block away. When UPS couldn't deliver it, they sent a postcard to my the same address, and the USPS did deliver the postcard. So she called me and I called them and gave them her correct address.
She gets quite a few packages from UPS on her own, including shoes and stuff for her business, and yet the deliverry man, usually the same guy every day, even though it said Fancy Tropical Fixh on the label, couldn't find her place on a block with only about 20 businesses, becaus the address was at the othe end of a quarter mile block. But the Post Office had no trouble finding it.
I thought most ebay sellers would just print a label, but apparently this guy copied it by hand and miscopied. I have to write him.
In some cases, they charge less to deliver to a business, because it is easier to find someone there, and less gets stolen. iiuc.
She is only there from 8 to 4 M-F and someone is there to noon on Sat, but the delivery guys, all three companies, know all that.
>
A bigger problem is that one does't even know the package has arrived at all, and been stolen. So even if an exact replacement is available, it takes extra extra time.
Besides the guy who kicked in my door but left without taking anything, I had one other occasion involving theft. It took me months to notice, but someone stole two gas lawnmowers which were mostly under my deck in the back yard. I had spent hours and hours trying to get even one of them running, and was saving them for parts.
I apreciate his taking them away.
Just mount a gun above the door. Once the thief is shot dead, you can identify them and have their corpse arrested.
shoot 2 kill
probably a sign, hi this delivery area is being recorded on video, steal and you will be arrested.
cameras are so small today they will likely just leave, for easier pickings.
tell all the neighbors about your new security system, the word will spread:)
Hi Ken:
Go to your nearest Radio Shack and buy a cheap black & white, motion activated, video camera and plug it into a VCR. I had a problem with neighborhood kids playing ding dong ditch at 11:00 at night. I put a camera up and recorded my front door with it. It's small, but I put it in a conspicuous place. All I had to do was tell one particular talkative neighbor (every neighborhood has one), and the ringing stopped immediately. That was over a year ago. I don't even turn on the VCR anymore.
Come to think of it, you could probably just buy a $5 fake camera and get the same result.
Regards, John.
I'm assuming this is a troll and haven't read the rest of the thread, but the title caught my eye and reminded me of...
The obnoxious guy from Pittsburgh had to work with who asked what the pretty vine he saw all over the side of the roads was (in TN). We were happy to send him home w/ some nice kudzu seedlings to plant in his yard... :) (Always wondered whatever became of it -- maybe his whole neighborhood is now awash?)
What I find worked with UPS was a sign on the door that said "UPS, Ring Bell. If no one home leave notification and return package to Will Call."
Without that sign, they would do their famous "drop and run" delivery.
What was really annoying is that they would sometimes leave notification for relatively worthless items (i.e. I ordered some free non-local phone directories and they returned them to will call) but just leave packages with expensive stuff (i.e. they left an $800 bicycle by the front door).
Well, you haven't signed for it, so it's not delivered as far as your concerned.
Why would you have parcels left on your porch anyhow?
FedEx left a $3000 PowerBook outside my door. The box was clearly and prominently marked that a signature was required. Furthermore, this was at an apartment complex, so they could have left it at the manager's office, and obtained a signature there.
On cheap items shipped not shipped overnight, that is in fact what they do. Leave them with the manager and get a signature there. It's only the PowerBook that they left outside the door.
But that is not the end of their annoyance. On items that are in between, and have been shipped overnight because I needed them quickly, those they neither leave outside the door nor at the manager's office. Those get the "we missed you, you can pick it up after 6PM at our inconveniently located office, or we'll try again tomorrow" note. And if I let them try again tomorrow, leaving a large note for them reminding them that they can leave the package at the manager, they leave the "we missed you, and will try one more time, then send the thing back" note.
And if you check the tracking information on that package online, you will probably see that FedEx shows that it *was* signed for.
By somebody named "F. Rontdoor".
And, NO, I am NOT making that up.
UPS, DHL, etc. does not give you a choice. No one home they just leave them. I had a DHL package stolen last year. Only way I knew it was gone was checking with the shipper to find out when my stuff would be shipped.
That's the way it used to be (almost?) everywhere all the time.
It's still that way in many neighborhoods. Nothing gets stolen and it's very convenient.
Exactly what I wa afraid of. That's why I wanted one of their sticky slips left somewhere (not on the package) when they did leave the package. Then I would know if it were stolen.
I'm positive UPS has a policy of giving you a choice. Many ebay vendors say "Signature Required" but even if they don't, you can register with your local UPS so that they will require it even if the shipped doesn't. Then if you aren't home, they take the package back.
In addition, they declare certain n'hoods to be "Signature required", although someone in that area can also register with the local office of UPS so that they don't require a signature unless the sender says so.
I don't like DHL.
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