To expect neighbours to come and collect their missed parcels?

[DiamondMine]

One of our neighbours orders a lot of stuff online (fair enough, so do we) however, they are out all day at work (again, fair enough) DP works shifts so is often around in the mornings when post/ parcels are being delivered. They always ask us to sign for them and then they pop a note through their door.

However, every bloody time they never come over to collect, we always have to bring their parcels round to them. Ive just arrived home from work, DP is at work and obviously signed for some parcels for said neighbours as there are 4 (quite big) boxes here and an ASOS bag.

WIBU to not go back out again tonight in the pissing rain and cold and just wait to see if they bother to come and collect?

AIBU? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind popping people's missed post round on the odd occasion but I’m not bloody Royal Mail and I’m inclined to think if it’s your parcel, it’s your responsibility to collect?

It’s taking up a lot of space in the hallway too

We had this with one of our neighbours so I just stopped taking them in. If someone's good enough to take your parcel in the least you can do is get off your backside and collect it. I watched the postman put a card through their door once and when I asked if they'd got a card they denied it. That was the last parcel that I took for them. My other neighbour also stopped taking parcels for them for the same reason. Oh well.

I'm a SAHM so I take parcels I take parcels in for most neighbours (though in a cramped one bedroom flat I don't really have room for them) I think it's nice to the neighbours and saves the postman taking them back with him.
Therws one neighbour I will not accept parcels for any more, firstly, he's in when the postman delivers at 11am, he just won't get his lazy arse out of bed, and secondly it takes him around 2 weeks to come and collect the parcel. Absolute pain in my arse and i can't be bothered anymore, even if that makes me a shitty neighbour.

I don’t understand why you are whinging about this. If you don’t want to take parcles to them then you don’t have to and you don’t have to take them in in the first place. You are choosing to do something and then moaning about your own actions. Pointless.

Manners cost nothing, of a parcel isn’t collected within 24hrs I don’t take them in for that person again. One neighbour has royally shot herself in the foot by continually not collecting, now everyone refuses her massive boxes. Quite frankly, she can fuck off.

I don’t understand why you are whinging about this. If you don’t want to take parcles to them then you don’t have to and you don’t have to take them in in the first place. You are choosing to do something and then moaning about your own actions. Pointless.

Exactly.

I never take parcels over anymore.

One neighbor is a massive pain and she is never in, or never answers her door anyway, but orders a lot online.
The longest I had a parcel of hers once was over a month.
I would go over every day or so when I could see the lights and tv on but she never answered the door.

Now I don’t bother, if they aren’t collected within 24 hours the parcels go in the cupboards under the stairs or the garage so they are not in the way and they stay there until the owner can be bothered to collect them.

Alright, calm down Alfie bloody hell!

I didn’t (and wouldn’t) take parcels in for them! DP does! I told him last time to just start saying no. I appreciate it’s awkward and do feel sorry for the postman/ couriers but I’m sure the neighbours the other side would take it for them, or someone round here. Otherwise, they’ll have to just go making trips to the sorting office!

DP has now gone away fro work until Friday so looks like I’ll have to deal with it. I’ll bring them over after work and say that we cannot keep their parcels for days on end, as we just haven’t got the space and that if they want us to continue taking for them, fhey’ll need to collect within 24 hours unless away/ on holiday etc.

If they continue to do the same thing then that’s it, we’ll take one more delivery and then never again!

I try to be neighbourly and I’d like to think people would take our post if needed. I also don’t want to cause bad blood so will give them one more chance after I’ve explained the situation and then it’s bye bye parcels!

I personally think it's about etiquette and what is the done thing. Maybe they don't want to impose on you so wait for you to bring it when it's convenient to you. My neighbour and I were hit and miss, if we saw the other around we would bring or collect, but if there was no obvious signs of life, even if the cars were there we wouldn't because they may have been in bed or in he bath etc. Then again our neighbours all worked shifts patterns, all four of them, so you it wasn't difficult to catch one of them within a day or so no I work from home.

Protocol where I live is that whoever accepts the parcel takes it around to the neighbour

?? But how do you know when they're in, unless you sit there at the window waiting? (or just go back and forth on the off-chance?)

Surely the onus is on the person who has been done the favour to make the effort to "reciprocate" by promptly collecting their parcel, not waiting around like Lady Muck for a personal redelivery?

I’ve been the neighbour not collecting before but only because the courier never left a damn card. I also had a courier who would leave a card but didn’t write anything on it to say where it was . One time years ago a woman from across the road found me on Facebook to explain she had a parcel of mine that I had no idea about...

So that’s a possibility or they just expect you will be their personal courier. Stop taking parcels in.

BikeRunSki i’ve been round twice a day for 4 days and can’t get near the front door to knock. I can see that there is somebody in!

Send them a letter?

Pinkprincess1978 We have a neighbour who very kindly takes in parcels for us - but then never opens the door

Must be one of 'those' MNers

I am always too scared to knock on my neighbour’s door when he has my parcel in case it is a bad time or I am bothering him. I always wait for him to knock for me. I thought I was being polite and considerate

Post a thank you card through their letterbox thanking them for all the gifts they keep buying for you, but they don’t need to do so any longer 😂

DP took in a parcel for a neighbour we don't know and they didnt come to collect it so after a week I took it round. Neighbour hadn't received a card and the tracking only said delivered - not where to! Sounds like this isn't the case, so just sit tight and let them come to you. If they want it they'll come for it, if not can you return to sender (for free?)?

Mummadeeze - I feel the same.
If I've got neighbours parcel would prefer to deliver it when it suits me, rather than be disturbed at random time by them coming to collect.

I'm always happy to take in a parcel for neighbours. Currently got one in the hallway that's been there nearly two weeks. Think that's verging on CF neighbour territory....

Urgh I've stopped answering the door now because I'm sick of being my neighbours sorting office. There is little excuse now with click and collect etc.

Not very neighbourly I know but I'm fed up of having packages everywhere that aren't even ours.

Gosh what drama over nothing. Just ask their number next time they come round and send them a text to collect. Also take this as an opportunity to ask them for something (anything) in the future!

My neighbours always being my parcels round if they’ve taken them in but I would never expect it. They don’t work and I do so i think they often see me coming home and just pop it round.
I have on numerous occasions not had a card through the door though so if they hadn’t come over I’d be oblivious that they had anything for me. I’ve taken the odd thing for over the road but never take it over myself because the man works nights and I’d hate to knock him out of Bed so I just wait for him to come for it himself.

OP I would definitely be surprised if the couriers don't make it perfectly clear where the parcels have been delivered to. Even allowing for them not making it clear on the card, almost all couriers will electronically inform the customer that the delivery has been made so the customer can follow up to find out where it was delivered to.

You don't have to worry about it turning into a big thing. If they fail to collect their parcel again, just inform the courier in future that you can't accept parcels. You don't have to explain yourself to anyone. Personally I'm a patient person but one thing I won't stand for is having people take the piss like that.

I would stop accepting them. I think most couriers/Royal Mail leave a card with an option to have it re-delivered. I'd prefer my neighbour to do that than take in a parcel and be pissed off with me.

I am always too scared to knock on my neighbour’s door when he has my parcel in case it is a bad time or I am bothering him. I always wait for him to knock for me. I thought I was being polite and considerate blush

If it's a properly bad time or inconvenient then they can just not answer the door (but really, 10 seconds to say hello and thanks isn't really going to be that difficult for anyone).

IMO it appears a lot more inconsiderate to wait round for them to bring your goods to you like your servant; than the very rare off chance you promptly ringing the bell to collect your goods will cause them a huge and undoable problem.

OP, I’d put a note through the door saying something like “we’ve got some parcels for you, please collect them” on the off chance they’ve not got a card, and then wait for them to collect them.
I have taken parcels round to neighbours before, but I’d not feel like putting myself out by taking parcels round for a neighbour who never ever bothered to come and get the parcels themselves, and was unfriendly on top of that.

And your delivery men are generally reliable about putting cards through doors, then I’d just stop taking their parcels in altogether. Your DP could have been out when the post was delivered for all your neighbours know.

I am always too scared to knock on my neighbour’s door when he has my parcel in case it is a bad time or I am bothering him. I always wait for him to knock for me. I thought I was being polite and considerate

Is that because of all the threads on MN about how posters never answer the door?? I've actually never known anyone in RL who is that worried about people knocking on their door. 😂

Some people can't carry parcels to your house; they could have a disability you're not aware of, or they might have young children. So it really isn't considerate to expect neighbours to deliver your parcels to you.

Probably best if your DH tells the delivery man that he won't be accepting any parcels for that neighbour in future as they don't collect them the same day.