Postman took photo of me

[Ringringringringringringringbananaphone]

Posting here for traffic - does anyone know if postmen/women (for regular post office mail) are supposed to take pictures with people in? I find my regular postman super-creepy anyway (he calls me love/darling/sweetheart, all within the few seconds transaction of handing over the post, and he has made comments before about what a “beauty” my five year old is). So in general: super creepy.

But today, I swear he took a surreptitious photo of me as he was handing the post over , and I’m very weirded out. It would only have been of my boobs downward as he didn’t point the device at my face, but I’m sure he took a photo. He has done this once before, and left me questioning things in my mind, but he’s always just immediately on his way out of the gate so I haven’t had a chance to say anything to him. I will, next time!

But in the meantime can any posties or knowledgeable people tell me what’s normal/if it’s acceptable to take photos of people when delivering the post? I was thinking of contacting the sorting office, but then he would know it was me that made a complaint and he knows I’m a single parent with a 5 year old (or at least he probably assumes that, as he has never seen anyone else here). It’s really bothered me.

I have had this before when accepting recorded delivery. But they've always told me they're taking it. If it wasn't recorded delivery I'd report it. And if it was next time I'd tell him you don't want to be in the picture so he needs to take it off the parcel by the door

Was it just normal post or was there anything that needed proof of receipt hence the photo.

Mine takes photos too for deliveries but always tells me

Normal. It is a record of delivery.

No doubt lots of people have falsely said they haven't received a parcel and get a refund. Most couriers do this these days.

Delivery people take photos of the parcel in your doorway. Could he have been doing that? The one from down the path might have been because he forgot.

I don't think it's creepy for people to call you "darling" or "sweetheart" or to compliment someone's five year old. Annoying and dated and playing into sex-based stereotypes, yes, but not really creepy. So I think I'd take this stuff out of the equation and work out just what the purpose of the photos was. If there was no post-related reason to take the photos, then it's worth reporting the incidents to the local sorting office.

I've had it happen, but they always tell me first.

Just normal post, nothing signed for or tracked

No, he’d already left some parcels by the door and scanned them, this was a handful of normal post

They shouldn't take a photo of your face

They should only take a photo of the parcel and maybe your hand or leg

Yes, I think this it. There was no reason for me to be in the picture, it was just regular post - and other couriers etc have always been very careful to tell me that they’re taking a photo for proof of delivery. It was the surreptitiousness of it that unsettled me.

If it’s normal post why did you open the door

It's quite common. Are you new to receiving parcels?

It's quite normal nowadays for all delivery people to take photos, it obviously wasn't normal post or it would have been put through the letterbox

It was probably of the parcels on the floor that you mention

They take it of the parcels and the open door

I notice our couriers or postie always say something like ‘do you mind if I take a pic as proof of delivery?’ If he’s not saying that before he should be!

You had parcels by the door you said?

I've found it hit-and-miss whether they've told me or not before taking the photo, sometimes I've been too quick taking the parcel and turning round and they've asked me to turn back. They always appear careful not to include my face, the consequence tho', is that depending on how high you're holding the letter/parcel, the photo would include someone's chest.
I can see how all this put together (love, darling beauty etc.) and men's propensity to use any situation for nefarious means would worry you, but I think logically it's just some out-dated, sexist, friendliness and a new system when delivering parcels that isn't always flagged up by the deliverer

The photo ideally needs the door to be open and someone receiving delivery, otherwise they could just pose the parcels by the photo, then pick them back up.

They like to take a photo of an open door to show you were in & they hadn’t just left it there. Leads to disputes if it disappears as the postie could have (feasibly) taken it after taking the photo.

Any doubt just leave the package at your feet.

If the parcels were by the door and the door was open surely that’s what he was taking a picture of?

Oh fgs. It's completely normal. He's probably just trying to do his job.

I’ve contacted a courier company to complain about this policy, can’t remember which one it was - DHL etc.

So the driver has to take a photo of the open door, the parcel inside and the occupier. I said I didn’t want to be in the pic and the call handler said to either just have my foot/leg in shot instead or pretend to be out so it can be delivered to porch (in my case) or similar.

So this is what I did with that delivery company from then on. It was the company that brought the Gousto boxes to me but I’ve cancelled now (not related) so I don’t have this issue anymore.

TL;DR - either pretend to be out or just say you don’t want the pic taken and stand behind door so only your foot is in shot.

You said you had parcels to which he'd scanned, they then take a picture as proof of delivery. He's done nothing wrong re the pictures. If you're uncomfortable with how he talks to you, ask him to please not too

No, he’d already left some parcels by the door and scanned them

That's what he'd be taking a picture of them, with the door open to evidence that you were in.