Pretending to be Amazon delivery

[PretendAmazon]

This morning, had two women ring my doorbell. When I asked them who they were and what they wanted, there was a bit of a pause / hesitancy, they then said they were from “Amazon”.

Just seconds before that, a man carrying a big box did ask for entry, but when I asked him to confirm which flat he wanted (because I definitely was NOT expecting a package but wondered if I should accept for the immediate neighbours), he frowned and promptly left without answering.

There were two women standing behind him by two or three yards, standing aside a bit.

Then just a heartbeat later, they stepped up to the intercom and rang my bell again.
I could see all this on camera.
I noticed they were not carrying any sort of package and did not look like the usual sort of delivery drivers.
I asked them what exactly were they delivering? Again, looking a bit shifty and sheepish, they replied that it was “a suitcase”.

There are several problems with this:

They were wearing plain clothes, think slightly crumpled civil servants look, wouldn’t have pegged them as drivers

They were both carrying rucksacks - never seen drivers doing this when they are sprinting around all day

There were two of them - never seen two drivers delivering one supposed package

They just generally were not convincing and shifted around oddly

Do delivery drivers even know exactly what is in a package they are delivering for them to claim it’s a suitcase?

They would not identify themselves when challenged that they clearly were not from Amazon

When I asked them to confirm they had the right door number, they said, “Yes. You. Number such and such.”

They seemed quite exasperated by my questions, as though they had every right to enter.

They were definitely trying to lie their way in.

Does anyone have any idea what they may have been up to?

It’s all very odd. Occasionally someone might mistakenly ring the bell, but I haven’t seen this level of intent, lying, and persistence.

Has this happened to anyone else?

I would say they certainly fit that profile more than religious zealots or people flogging tat… they looked to jaded and pencil pushing, no perkiness or enthusiasm, but a definite purpose and intent to enter.

What’s the purpose of the stakeouts and stroll pasts, what exactly will going to someone’s flat do?
Assuming they don’t have a warrant and won’t be let in… I assume if they had a warrant they would not need to buzz anyone.
Are they known for not identifying themselves and lying, even when directly questioned?

As for the building layout, once you’re through the main entrance, you have to go through other doors to access different flats in various parts of the building, a resident needs to let you in through those as well.

They were both carrying what appeared to be narrow long tube things with a handle, wrapped in white, with a few small black logos. Almost identical to several loo rolls wrapped and stacked vertically in a single file, about half a metre long. Each woman was carrying one.

No idea what those were.
Do loo rolls come with a handle at the top, and do they come stacked vertically?

Or is this some sort of equipment?

Sorry OP, haven't a clue - but I'm very intrigued by the "long toilet roll holder", whatever that may be 🤔

Would someone on a stroll by come with such a weak and easily disproved reason for knocking? I would think they would have several strong pre thought out pretexts.

The tube with a handle sounds like some sort of equipment to me, but of course it could contain anything, tools to break in with possibly?

For what it's worth I used to do the 'plain clothes deliveries' for amazon. I bought a hi vis vest in the end because I seemed to take people by surprise when I said I had their parcel, just didn't look the type I suppose. I was more worried about people seeing me leaving parcels in safe spaces and getting shouted at though which led to the hi vis.

Pre hi vis vest however once I said I had a parcel there was never any suspicion. Any courier has too much to get on with to come across as shifty basically. You say and do the same thing over and over. You'd have seen faffing on a phone for scanning and stuff. I wouldn't have been stood there like a jehovahs witness.

For what it's worth, I absolutely loved that job.

This. If this happens again, just state that you haven’t ordered anything and you can clearly see this on your app. I’d even go as far as to let them know I was on the phone to Amazon CS to seek advice. I don’t even want to imagine what they may have been up to but you definitely did the right thing by not letting them in!

Have you spoken to Amazon since?

What’s the purpose of the stakeouts and stroll pasts, what exactly will going to someone’s flat do?
Assuming they don’t have a warrant and won’t be let in… I assume if they had a warrant they would not need to buzz anyone.
Are they known for not identifying themselves and lying, even when directly questioned?

Well they are usually trying to see a) who is coming and going from an address and whose vehicles are parked there or b) checking for disabilities claimed, typically mobility impairments, stiffness etc.

Usually this will be sitting in a parked vehicle eyeballing a front door for hours, recording number plates, and taking notes and photographs whenever someone does enter or emerge. Where it's not possible to see the individual entrance from a busy street, though, they sometimes do (honestly a bit odd) things like gain pretend to go for a casual stroll down a cul de sac and back up it again or gain entrance to the common area of a block to get sight of the front door. I've read accounts of this but never seen it so I'm not sure what they'd say if challenged. FBI it ain't.

The meter long tube thing makes me think it's something else now, though.

It might be that - whoever they are - they're not used to being directly challenged. Lots of people just buzz whoever in rather than argue the toss. Maybe that's even the norm.

Would you elaborate on this, please?

The tube things, could that be noise pollution officers’ equipment? Are they shaped like that?

Sometimes Amazon orders are delivered by plain clothed drives, and most of them ARE women in my area. Can't tell for sure, but when ordering you have this note "dispatched from Amazon (whatever location)", and sometimes it is "dispatched from (business name)". I assume there are employed delivery drivers, working with branded vans going from Amazon warehouses, and then there are freelance ones, ferrying general marketplace stuff in their own cars.
But even with that in mind, your interaction sound very different and weird. If anything, they tend to "hit & run", dropping parcels by the post area or concierge desk, never going to flats?

Sounds like they are Tory or Reform canvassers trying to get in to door knock. They know they are unwelcome in 99% of cases so have to lie their way in. It's been happening all over the country this week.

That tracks. There was something kind of sleezy about them.