Neighbours parcel still here after 6 days

[TheTealBee]

AIBU we have relatively new neighbours, a young couple who both work full time. They seem pleasant, we pass the time of day with then when we see them. The problem is they get a lot of parcels delivered, on average twice a week which we take in for them which is not a problem but they don't come and get them! We used to take them round to them or he would come and get them. I am getting a bit fed up with this and don't think I should have to deliver to them. We now have a parcel sitting in our hall that has been there for 6 days. I checked with the delivery driver he had told them the parcel was with us and it is from Amazon and I know they will have been notified where it is. I don't want to cause any problems and we did tell him last time we had a huge parcel for 5 days! What should we do?

Do they actually know it's been delivered to you? I'm just wondering as some of our couriers don't leave cards or will mark as delivered at my address. Luckily I have really good neighbours who are good friends, and who communicate with us & we have security cameras so can track our deliveries, but not everyone has this.

There has been multiple times where next door have taken in an unexpected parcel and the delivery person has marked it as 'handed to resident' or 'delivered to Mrs Myotherrideisabroom' at 'my address', but not left a card. Multiple times RM have taken a photograph of my item, at my front door and used that as a proof of delivery, but have given the parcel next door or left it in our recycling bin 🙉

I used to take in parcels but then next door started taking the piss, constant parcels, constantly disrupting me when I was either sleeping or breastfeeding or got a baby napping etc. He was hardly ever in so was really hard to catch him home to give him the parcels and it would take him days to come collect.

I lost my rag one day when the parcelforce man tried to force a HUGE box in my tiny hallway for him that would have taken up the only space in my living room, right in the middle of the floor. I told him NO. I'm not taking that.

I haven't taken a parcel in since and funnily enough, the parcelforce man stopped with the constant knocking on me too - thank fuck.

My next door neighbour generally is a piss-taker, his visitors constantly block us in our drive, he has really noisy building work going on for months and months and didn't even have the decency to tell us about it beforehand. Our garden got covered in building brick and concrete dust from it, all over our organically grown fruit and veg, and we couldn't open our windows until late in the evenings because of it for over 6 months. He's a pain in the ass and his mum's a noisy stuck up cow.

Stop accepting their parcels

they might not always be informed that you have been handed the parcel

I’m in good terms with my neighbours but I refuse to accept parcels from neighbours who take the piss by ordering items knowing they won’t be in to accept them time after time. I think it’s completely rude and selfish.

What a depressing post, I may just be lucky living in semi rural Scotland, but the idea of not taking a parcel in for a neighbour would never enter my head. I live in a cul de sac of 6 houses and we all happily accept, if I see them (my neighbours) coming back, I'll pop over with it. Sometimes nearer Christmas if it looks like it might be something that needs hidden from a small child I would text first. It takes less than 60 seconds.

Our Amazon (and all courier) drivers just leave stuff on doorsteps now ever since Covid. It’s great!

You can choose to be pissed off OP, or you can simply execute the solution that works for you. And going forward, that will include not taking in parcels for neighbours. These parcels aren’t getting into your hallway without an active decision being made, are they. So just stop making that decision.

This started happening to me about a year ago with a new neighbor a few doors down.

Asked them to stop. Told them to stop. Refused a few, but I have a large gate and delivery drivers often just chuck stuff over it.

Simple solution - Any parcel I find inside my gate that doesn't have our names on it gets pitched full force into the middle of the street.

Haven't had one in months 😅

Bloody hell harsh bunch! The neighbours may be away or the delivery company may not have notified them despite what they told you.

I often take in parcels for my neighbours across the hallway who we are on v good terms with. They do the same for us though far less often as we are in more often. The parcel duties were the start of a really nice helpful relationship. They pay our kids over the odds to watch their cats while they are away, have lent us tools etc. we help them, they help us, it’s very nice having them around. One time they did leave a really big parcel with us for over a week as due to some work commitments couldn’t come and get it. It was a slight pain but totally worth it to have such nice neighbours.

I used to get this very frequently with an old neighbour. I used to take it round when they got back from work, as despite what they say, the drivers often didn't leave card.

Then we exchanged numbers and I'd text to say I'll leave it in my porch after 6pm, so the onus was on them to collect. If they wouldn't be home, they could easily let me know.

I actively don’t answer the door when they try from one particular house first, then trot to our door because of this. They get around 2-3 deliveries a day and some are hazardous (one wfh). They end up stuck in our teeny hallway for days on end and me not knowing what’s inside. We take them back but we get a bit fed up trundling over with armfuls of boxes or a trip hazard for us when kept at ours.

For the other neighbours it’s no bother at all.
when I was on maternity leave all the delivery vans (DPD/ FedEx / UPS etc) used to queue up for the whole road and ring the doorbell constantly with a sleeping baby (even with notes over the bell). One day I asked them all not to call again unless for me as it got ridiculous with boxes everywhere - and neighbours asked me to pop it round at the weekend as they didn’t have the time to take it in as they were going out. CF alert!!

Put it in a plastic bag and leave outside their door. Don't accept any more parcels for them. I'm notorious for automatically exclaiming "yes of course!!!" when I'm asked if I'd be happy to accept a parcel for neighbours. I've had to hype myself and rehearse saying "no, sorry, we won't be in for them to collect". Repeat repeat repeat. I decided to do this when a neighbour knocked to collect their parcel but barely addressed me or said hello, just nodded at me to get their parcel while they were on a video call!!! They thanked me after collecting and continued their video call, which really made me feel like a royal mail sorting office or something.

You might feel differently if you got a mattresses delivered that wasn't collected from you.

My neighbour once took a chest of drawers, oh what fun we had trying to get that over the fence!

Just refuse to take in parcels which aren’t for you. Problem solved

Start saying no to the delivery driver.

We had this several years ago with new next door neighbours. They were both at work all day and would order deliveries knowing that neither of them would be here to take them in. Twice we took in large and heavy boxes of materials for his business and as he was quite often working away during the week and the boxes were too heavy for my husband or his wife to carry, they sat in our hall for several days getting in the way of the front door until the weekend when he would come and collect them.

We had to tell them that we would not take in any more deliveries. They could have fitted a safe storage box in their garden or made some other arrangement, especially for materials for his business.

Just go round with the package, tell them how many days you've been expecting them to come and collect it and ask them whether the delivery driver had left them a card. Whether he did or did not, tell them you can't take in any more. If you are not careful, you'll be taking in for half the street.

If people are out during the day, they should make other arrangements.

You can ask to be taken off their safe neighbour list on Amazon.

just refuse the delivery at the door.

I really like my neighbours and I take in parcels for them at least 4 times a week. They work odd shifts so it’s difficult to predict a time when they will be in. I don’t mind as one of the children will come collect it within a day or two. It did get annoying when one of them started a new business and I was getting deliveries for them multiple times a day, which was disturbing my meetings and my sleep. That stopped quite quickly for some reason.
One time they went on holiday and I had a delivery driver ask if I’d take a package for them. I agreed thinking it was the usual small stuff. I was wrong, the driver goes back to the van and starts unloading huge boxes. He has already done this before bringing them to the door so I felt I couldn’t then refuse. A whole week I had the neighbours entire bedroom furniture in my tiny hall. I had to climb over boxes to get upstairs and couldn’t open my shoe cupboard. It was ridiculous. Neighbours did apologise over and over.
As I said I only do it because I know my neighbours well and we are friends. In your shoes op I wouldn’t. Too many things to go wrong, like pp experienced with the missing item, plus you don’t want this to become the expectation.

I say YABU as you've chosen to collect them and then getting annoyed about it. Just stop doing it or use your words.

I once had a bloke turn up who had had a delivery card but the driver didn't write who the parcel was left with. Poor bloke had to go up and down the street to find it.

It happens!

Again, another weak person not able to stand up for themselves. What is wrong with people. You know what you have to do. 🗣

They may not know - I always check my app to see if a parcel has been delivered (I order to other addresses not just my home).
I also do not take in parcels unless it’s my immediate neighbours. They come around promptly and if away (as one side is frequently) I text them, as usually they have warned me that they expect a delivery.
I certainly would not be acting as a second delivery service for the neighbourhood. The onus is on the true owner to collect. But few delivery companies leave cards (and our RM certainly does not). So maybe just stop accepting the parcels from now on. I also designate a ‘safe place’ on most deliveries (which is actually my front door but we don’t have a theft issue).

How come they don't just leave it on the doorstep of the person who the parcel is for?

This thread has made me think. We're on friendly terms with all our neighbours but we don't have their numbers. To all the people saying "message them to say you have their parcel", how did it come about that you exchanged numbers? Why do you need their numbers? They're neighbours so surely it's just as quick to go and knock on the door if you need to tell/ask them something?

I remind my neighbours if they haven't picked something up after a day.