What to do about big parcel delivered for previous occupant?

[FreyaBarnet]

We've lived in our house for 11 years. The doorbell rang today and it was RM van dropping off a parcel. As is the way in Covid times, he waved at me as I went to the door and drove off.

The parcel is big and heavy. When I turned it over, I see it's addressed to the man who we bought the house from. I don't know where he lives now.

Is there any way I can get RM to collect it? You can't park anywhere near the Sorting Office and I don't want to lug it half a mile down the road.

I know I can pay for them to collect a parcel but obviously I don't want to do that.

It's really annoying. It's a huge box and weighs about 10kg!

Do you know which company he ordered from? Maybe contact them?

Or double check to see if there's a mobile number on the label.

I think the problem is Royal Mail have delivered it to the right address so they’ve done their job ..... I’d open it and look for a packing invoice so I could contact the Sender and Ask them to arrange collection

If there is a return address or email, get in touch with the sender and explain the situation. They should then arrange for the parcel to be collected. It's not your responsibility to take it to the post office or any other delivery depot.

Yeah, open it. The company he’s ordered it from should be able to get in touch.

Open it and look for an invoice then contact the company and ask them to collect it

The label is just loads of codes. I hadn't thought about opening to check for a packing slip for some reason!

I'll have a look.

Would you like to know what's inside?

Obviously, yes please.
Maybe it’s a live anaconda, in which case probably ring RSPCA before updating us, we’ll wait.

Is it a cordless lawnmower?

Open it, contact the sender if there's and invoice, ask them to arrange collection. Wait 14 days. Dispose of as you feel fit. What's in it?? Could understand if he'd been gone 6 months, but 11 years! Even Hermes don't take that long.

Open it 😈

After you've told us what's in it, contact the sender and ask for them to arrange collection/let them tell you to keep it and they contact intended recipient to get proper address.

@insancerre

Is it a cordless lawnmower?

Are we placing bets?

I'm going with school leaver hoodies or similarly boring contents.

Well it is boring but also a bit odd. It's an entire BT wifi/phone/tv kit. When you order things like that, don't they have to check that your address is compatible so you have to input it into their website? And if he's an existing customer, he would have had previous bills being sent here surely?

No packing slip in the box. Guess I'm going to have to spend my Saturday trying to get hold of stupid BT mow

The only other suggestion I can think of, is ask the estate agent you used. They may possibly have a fwd address / phone number for him, if he's not moved again since then.

Do you even have space to store it?

That's very strange - 11 years is a long time, not like he moved out a couple of weeks ago?!

I'd probably just bin it!

Pain for you OP

Has he perhaps moved recently and tried to set up a new account, but BT have got the address muddled with an old one?

@warmfluffytowels

Has he perhaps moved recently and tried to set up a new account, but BT have got the address muddled with an old one?

Now that sounds plausible!

@warmfluffytowels

Has he perhaps moved recently and tried to set up a new account, but BT have got the address muddled with an old one?

That was my thought too. Have sent you a pm with an email address to hopefully sort it out :)

Now that sounds plausible!

I used to do label printing for a retail company, and if it works anything like that, then I suspect the person sorting the addresses has gone onto his account and just clicked the first address that came up, which happens to be yours lol.

The person who does the label printing won't be the person who set up the order, so they won't realise it's an error. Should be easily remedied!

Thank you @Cottonheadedninymuggins - have sent an email which will hopefully do the trick.

Thankfully my hallway is big enough to store it in but now I know what it is, I will no longer feel obliged to keep it lying down as it says on the side of the box!