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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think neighbours are dodgy

23 replies

AtSea1979 · 21/11/2018 20:21

Neighbours just brought my parcel round which they had taken in. It was open. She said “sorry it’s open I didn’t read the label and thought it was for me”.
Surely if you’ve taken it in you would know it wasn’t for you?
AIBU to think she might have been planning on stealing it but returned it as it wasn’t worth much? Or maybe just nosey?

OP posts:

MorningCuppa · 21/11/2018 20:23

Probably nosy! Don't the delivery people usually knock and ask if you will take a parcel in for house "insert number" ?

AdoreTheBeach · 21/11/2018 20:28

I can see how it could happen, if a number of parcels arrived; didn’t quite hear the delivery man say it was for the other house, or another person the house signed for it and this lady saw it thinking it was something she was expecting and opened by accident. At this time of year, with Xmas shopping happening (and amazon Black Friday deals) lots of packages could be coming. I know in our there are a few a day coming.

MuddyMoose · 21/11/2018 20:30

The same happened to me about a month ago. I didn't even consider it was because they wanted to steal it or be nosey. Just put it down to general mistake & was grateful they had brought it to me.

Joboy · 21/11/2018 20:31

I open a parcel by mistake it was sex toy.....

hazeydays14 · 21/11/2018 20:33

I did this DP took the parcel in then went to work, I got home and saw the parcel, assumed it was the one I was expecting and opened it. I apologised profusely to the neighbour who laughed and told me not to worry about it!

mindutopia · 21/11/2018 20:34

I regularly have couriers deliver parcels and run before I even notice they aren’t for us. They just want to get rid of them so they can go home for the day. So it’s entirely possible it’s an innocent mistake.

nevermorelenore · 21/11/2018 20:34

I did this to a neighbour once. I was expecting something from amazon and the delivery guy turned up, gave me a package and mumbled something that I couldn’t understand before rushing off. So I tore open the package, realised it was the wrong item and then checked the name. Luckily neighbour was fine about it and it wasn’t anything embarassing.

LL83 · 21/11/2018 20:34

If my dad brought a parcel in (often in my house watching kids) he would pay little attention to delivery man and say 'there's a parcel' when I got home. If I was expecting a parcel I might open it without looking properly.

MamaLovesMango · 21/11/2018 20:35

Done it myself actually. Just took it off the courier without listen (or did they say anything? Not sure) and ripped it open as soon as I shut the door. I’d ordered loads of stuff so was thinking it was one of my packages. Neighbour was fine about it as it’s happened to them too. No biggie.

Justanothernameonthepage · 21/11/2018 20:38

I did this last year. A bundle of pracels arrived and I just sat (sleep deprived with a baby trying to grab them) and started opening them to get them out the way before my 4yo came back from school. Wasn't till I looked at what I'd just pulled out and gotten confused over what it was and realised it had been delivered to the wrong address. Luckily the person it was for was very understanding or at least nice enough to pretend so.

EdithBouvier · 21/11/2018 21:06

I think if you're that bothered make sure you're in when you're parcels are being delivered. I have genuinely done this with my neighbours parcel because my husband took it in and I got home and started opening it before he said no that's for next door. I took it round and apologised and they didn't care because they know we're not robbing bastards .

CSIblonde · 22/11/2018 02:04

I came home to a parcel in the hall (3 flats). I didn't check label as assumed it was my new cushions. No one there ever got parcels normally but me. It was mahoosive sex toy, for tenant in flat below: who'd just done a runner after not paying rent for months. I binned it!

Purpleartichoke · 22/11/2018 02:25

We get the neighbors Mail and parcels all the time. I have definitely opened them because we get so many, they just get mixed in with ours.

Aquamarine1029 · 22/11/2018 02:30

I opened my neighbours parcel just 3 weeks ago. I was expecting one of my own, so I took the box and opened it without even looking at the label. It didn't even cross my mind. Thankfully, I'm good friends with my neighbour so it wasn't a problem! They knew it was completely unintentional.

Rachelover40 · 22/11/2018 02:39

I can understand how it would happen if she was expecting parcels of her own. It's happened to me, me doing it and someone down the road apologetically bringing me my partly opened parcel.

theworldistoosmall · 22/11/2018 03:07

I have done it. Nothing dodgy about it. Delivery man showed up with a load of parcels which I was expecting. I signed for everything and nothing was said about neighbours delivery. I opened up parcels and thought wtf is this, it was then I noticed it wasn't mine,

BramRang · 22/11/2018 03:44

I've done this a lot. My partner will take in parcels for neighbours and just leave them with our post, I'll come home and open them after a shift without really paying much attention (it usually happens after I work nights and I'm trying to be more attentive but it has happened 5+ times now). I'm sure our neighbours think we're dodgy too, but maybe they should try to be in for their parcels if thats the case!

ToeCleavage · 22/11/2018 04:14

She brought it round to you and it was opened which she would’ve known would look ‘dodgy’. I think you should cut her some slack because if, as you suspect, she wanted to see what was inside and steal it, wouldn’t it have been easier and entirely less incriminating to open it and bin it if that were the intention?

She brought it round. She didn’t have to as you’d never have known.

MaggieAndHopey · 22/11/2018 04:34

Actually I can see this happening legitimately if she gets a lot of parcels. I would give her the benefit of the doubt.

Monty27 · 22/11/2018 05:02

That is such a normal thing. I hope you have to go out of your way to collect your parcels in future. It sounds like a genuine mistake to me.

Drivemecrazy1974 · 22/11/2018 05:05

Make sure you're at home to receive your own bloody parcels then you won't need to accuse your neighbours of being dodgy, will you?
It's an easy thing to happen, especially at this time of year, and I, for one, wouldn't be happy that a mistake I'd made was being put on the internet for people to judge me on.
I have actually stopped taking in people's parcels now because a neighbour in the block of flats accused me of taking something that she had delivered that she wasn't in to accept yet again!
Turns out the delivery driver had left it with another neighbour. This was after 10 years of us taking in her parcels because she couldn't be bothered to get them delivered at a time when she was at home - never again!
You should be grateful that your neighbour took in your parcel at all....

silvercuckoo · 22/11/2018 06:45

Done it myself. Someone else accepting the delivery (e.g. cleaner) or DS getting to the parcel before me. Hope now the neighbour did not think I was trying to steal her stuff!

Blanchedupetitpois · 22/11/2018 06:49

Once is a mistake, if it happens more than once they’re dodgy!

My mum once collected a parcel that had been left with a neighbour. It was clothes, and the neighbour had opened them all up and tried them on! She handed them to my mum in a big crumpled bundle saying ‘I thought I’d ordered them’

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