How long must I keep neighbours’ parcels left at my house?

[Spring1664]

How long do I have to leave neighbours parcels which have been left at my house before I can get rid of them? I have not accepted these parcels, there is more than one notice saying don’t leave parcels here that are not addressed to [address redacted], the other houses have their house number clearly displayed, everybody has been warned I am not redelivering parcels anymore. If I catch a courier trying to leave a parcel I insist they take it back and either keep it or take it to the correct address.
The background. Ever since moving couriers have left parcels for other houses. One week I had about 8 parcels left that were for other addresses no one came for them and I had to drop them off and I said no more.
I am still getting some parcels left, I did leave one at the end of their driveway the other week and they drove past it for 2 days! It was quite a large parcel. There’s one tucked in near my gate atm and they could just reach round and get it but it’s been there for over a week now.
I would like to get a parcel bin thing for my own parcels but at this rate it’ll just fill up with other people’s.

But she’s not a delivery service, why should she have to?

I can’t get to their front door they have secure gates and a parcel drop box outside the gates. I did used to do this but really can’t be bothered any more

Sounds like a new build estate? My parents have the same problem. Gated community, they are the first property, tho bizarrely, number two as it just even numbers! They get everything delivered to them as it was the show home/site office. They are retired tho and love the interaction of all the neighbours coming to collect parcels. It would drive me barmy tho.

This… why would they leave it outdoors at an alternative address and not outdoors at the correct address. Bizarre.

Then again couriers have uploaded their proof I wasn’t home and it’s just a photo of a tree. Not even my tree.

Yes I does say who they are from and it’s a variety of couriers. I might start taking the parcels back to the drop off points if I am taking a parcel I am sending at the same time.
I don’t want to spend ages on the phone to courier companies and I don’t think it’ll make any difference as many of the drivers as self employed

To answer your question tho, Evri for example give you three days to collect if you have a parcel delivered to a pickup point. I had a delivery in store to waitrose and Argos last week and they both gave 48 hours. That seems fair

Coul it be because the houses have names not numbers and the courtiers can't find the right houses? If so, a large notice on your gate with a rough map showing the houses whose deliveries you get, might sort it.
I would be grateful if my neighbour round the corner who always gets my Evri deliveries would do this. It is a holiday cottage and whether I get them depends on the availability of a serious of holiday makers.

The current parcel I have moved off the garden furniture to a bit of grass that is outside my fence but isn’t council or highways property.
I suspect it’ll sit there for a week or more as it has been on my garden table for a week

I genuinely think it will be because your neighbours have ticked ‘deliver to a neighbour if out’ - they may even have an historic ‘if out, leave at No XX’ from previous neighbour - so they need to update this on every courier platform.

On all the platforms I use (Evri, DHL, DPD etc) I have ‘if out, please try neighbour at no XX’ so I have one nominated neighbour, and they have the same notice on their orders, so it is reciprocal. But the courier always knocks to check I am in and ask if I am happy to take it. It’s never just left - otherwise, why not just leave it on the recipients door step?

I would definitely drop a note in all their doors and say something like please amend your delivery preferences or any future parcels will be returned to sender or binned.

What a cheek!

Everyone improved their signage after I announced I wasn’t a delivery service at the end of last year

There’s no way a courier is leaving a parcel outside a neighbours house instead of outside the recipients house. Not in a million years.

I have sent notes or spoken to everyone but legally I’m not sure if I can bin them also it will take up quite a bit of precious bin space or I might have an issue with recycling going in the rubbish bin if a box is seen.

They do about once a week. It’s not a straight street with a line of houses more a poorly laid out cul de sac. Mine is the blindingly obvious drive way but others are clearly marked with signage

The neigbour might not be coming for them because they don't know you have them.
I just had it. Absolute no indication where the courier left it. None. I have instructions in case I am not home, I was anyway! Guy was not pleased having to bring them over, but I imply couldn't get out of amazon where they were.
Half the couriers do not read house numbers, signs, instructions.

I don't think there is easy solution. You all have signs etc. It's just shitty local delivery person. I miss my old good one...

I am not even surprised like others that some delivery just leaves them willy nilly at yours. Evri reddit shows things like that happen.

Just take them to your neighbours house.

Why are these people ordering stuff then clearly not caring if it arrives or not? I’d be v tempted to get the hosepipe out if they haven’t been rain damaged already or put up a sign ‘Free to Collect’…

Practically speaking if this is an issue affecting all the houses (and they aren’t changing their behaviour) can you all chip in for a a communal box with a number lock on it for the participating houses.

I work from home so I’m literally always in. But half the time parcels still go somewhere else - maybe to minimise the number of times they have to stop off on the street. And no one ever leaves a card. I’ve had a neighbour come over in a fury about a parcel - had no idea he had it, or that it was even out for delivery, and I’d been in all day. It does make me less like to be pissed off at a neighbour - I think it’s really the delivery companies that are to blame. (And obviously being in all the time, I take in a lot of parcels too).

Why should she?? She’s not a courier. She doesn’t want them left there and has told them not to do it. Hence why I’d leave them just off my property and whatever happens to them isn’t on me!

What planet do you live on?

It was only a couple of weeks ago that my neighbour's parcel was on my doorstep on a modern well marked housing estate.

Leave them out front then forget about them if fed up with taking them around to the right address. Someone will take them, even if not the person's name and address on them. Strange though, your delivery folk are particularly rubbish!

I have come to the conclusion that some delivery drivers are actually illiterate.

I put a note right on my doorbell last week telling the courier to leave the parcel in a specific place if I was out. They ignored it and took it back to their depot and I had to drive 15 miles to get it as their next delivery day was after the weekend and I needed it before then.

You're hilarious! Our local Facebook group is mainly photos of parcels on random doorsteps with "does anyone recognise this front door?" written underneath.

You must have better couriers than ours!
One time our parcel was missing for days until bin day when our next door neighbour found it had been dropped over their gate and been hidden from view by their bin!
Ive also had other houses letters 3 times in the last year, had neighbours parcels left by our back or front door, and ours at neighbours despite someone being home at ours and noone knocking.

If stuff is delivered to you that you didn’t order, you can tell the vendor (not the delivery company) that they have thirty days to remove it from your property at their own cost or you’ll either keep it, dispose of it, or pay for it to be removed and issue proceedings to recover the cost (if it’s something big you don’t want) at your own choice.

Open the package if you need to find out who sent it, email them, and put the package in your shed or somewhere out of sight. If they don’t arrange to collect (at your convenience) in a month, then it’s yours to keep.

Haha you're joking. Amazon has several times left next door's parcels at my front door. These are parcels addressed correctly with their name and number, and our house numbers are clear. Next door even have a parcel delivery box and a ring doorbell. But Amazon still sometimes delivers incorrectly.