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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to think it was rude they kept my misdelivered parcel?

369 replies

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 18:33

Was expecting a parcel on Saturday. (Was a small package, in a padded envelope so could easily fit through letterbox, no signature required)

Didn’t get delivered. So I checked the tracking details online Sunday evening. Tracking details said it had been delivered at 09:30am Saturday. It had a photo of the delivery person handing it over. All you can see in the photo is the package, someone’s shoes and their driveway. Which had a particular unique pattern of paving.

It wasn’t my shoes, or my driveway.

I walked up and down my street trying the find the driveway. Found it. About 8 houses down.

Knocked on the door and luckily they answered. I said “Oh I’m just wondering if you have a parcel for number 60 please”. They said yes, and gave it me. No “sorry I was going to bring it round/post it through your letter box”.

I understand people are busy but they had my parcel for 30+ hours. I would have had no idea they had it unless I went out looking at everyone’s driveways.

Was this rude of them?

OP posts:
Original poster
FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 21:19

Upsetbetty · 27/04/2026 21:15

I still can’t see why it’s your neighbour who has the problem tbh
if I was waiting on a package on Saturday I would have checked way before Sunday eve also…so now I think YABU for being so lax and then blaming your neighbour..

Show quote history

Sorry Betty. I’ll try and not be as lax next time.

OP posts:
moderate · 27/04/2026 21:20

PuggyPuggyPuggy · 27/04/2026 21:10

Am I the only one wondering what the hell everyone is on about with the neighbours "doing OP a favour"? It was an envelope that fits through a letterbox. If it's ended up 8 houses down the street, it's because the postie has made a mistake and delivered it to the wrong address - it's not a "will you take this parcel for your neighbour" job.

As for the AIBU - I sometimes accept a wodge of post from the postie or pick it up off the doormat, and then chuck it on the side without looking at it. A letter for a neighbour might not get noticed for days! I take it round when I can, because they obviously have no idea that I've got one of their letters. I wouldn't kill myself to get an envelope to another house if I was busy, and I wouldn't be apologising for the delivery guys mistake.

( And if I ever get another parcel for the neighbour who has the same first name as me, and lives in a house with the second digit of the number the same as mine, I might not bother... her other half was arsey when we tried to take her parcel round 😐)

If it's ended up 8 houses down the street, it's because the postie has made a mistake and delivered it to the wrong address - it's not a "will you take this parcel for your neighbour" job

Then why did the postie take a photo of the delivery, it rather than just posting it through the wrong letterbox?

moderate · 27/04/2026 21:21

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 21:19

Sorry Betty. I’ll try and not be as lax next time.

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Irony upon irony upon irony.

Upsetbetty · 27/04/2026 21:23

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 21:19

Sorry Betty. I’ll try and not be as lax next time.

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Yes you should.

RawBloomers · 27/04/2026 21:25

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 19:00

Because they live 8 houses down from me.

The parcel was a small envelope that can fit through any letterbox. It had my full correct address on.

I’d have thought the neighbourly thing to do would be to quickly nip down and post it through my letter box.

It’s what I do. If I get posted a letter or something that fits through a letter box in error I will always take it round.

But then again this is Mumsnet where being nice to neighbours doesn’t exist.

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It's the neighbourly thing to do, but it doesn't mean it's rude not to. There's a lot of neutral ground between neighbourly and rude.

Original poster
FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 21:25

Upsetbetty · 27/04/2026 21:23

Yes you should.

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Yes you’re right. I should have gone round within 24 hours. Not 30. What was I thinking Betty?🤣

OP posts:
LittlePinkWeed · 27/04/2026 21:27

I've had two envelope-sized tracked deliveries by Royal Mail, where they took photos of the envelopes being posted through the letterbox as proof of delivery. Unfortunately it wasn't my front door they were posted through. I tracked down whose front door it was but never got them back from the owner.

MatronPomfrey · 27/04/2026 21:27

I would expect someone to collect their parcel from me because I’d expect the delivery company to tell them where it was delivered to. Your neighbour isn’t to know the delivery company didn’t do that. Your contract is with the company you purchased the item from. You complain to them about the delivery service, they can then complain to the company they used.

PepsiBook · 27/04/2026 21:28

They don't know that you had no idea where it went.
20 hours is nothing. You have no idea what they've been doing in that time, if they were even home.
Maybe the had a PJs day.
Maybe they were ill.
Maybe they just forgot all about it.
Why are you so bothered by it that you felt you needed to start a thread?

onpills4godsake · 27/04/2026 21:29

If it was me and I delivered it to you it would be at 5am, it’s not my responsibility to sort your delivery

Upsetbetty · 27/04/2026 21:29

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 21:25

Yes you’re right. I should have gone round within 24 hours. Not 30. What was I thinking Betty?🤣

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Well you’re the one complaining that they kept it for 30hours….if you wanted the parcel then it’s your job to keep an eye on it and track it…not your neighbours!!

Arlanymor · 27/04/2026 21:31

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 21:13

Thank you so much. This is exactly my point. Common sense prevails 👏🏻👏🏻🤣

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Exactly your point?

Did you miss this bit: A letter for a neighbour might not get noticed for days! I take it round when I can.

You’re complaining about 30 hours… how does that align with your ‘could have just delivered it 20 seconds after they received it’ narrative?

Hammy19 · 27/04/2026 21:58

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 18:33

Was expecting a parcel on Saturday. (Was a small package, in a padded envelope so could easily fit through letterbox, no signature required)

Didn’t get delivered. So I checked the tracking details online Sunday evening. Tracking details said it had been delivered at 09:30am Saturday. It had a photo of the delivery person handing it over. All you can see in the photo is the package, someone’s shoes and their driveway. Which had a particular unique pattern of paving.

It wasn’t my shoes, or my driveway.

I walked up and down my street trying the find the driveway. Found it. About 8 houses down.

Knocked on the door and luckily they answered. I said “Oh I’m just wondering if you have a parcel for number 60 please”. They said yes, and gave it me. No “sorry I was going to bring it round/post it through your letter box”.

I understand people are busy but they had my parcel for 30+ hours. I would have had no idea they had it unless I went out looking at everyone’s driveways.

Was this rude of them?

I would assume that you had been notified where your parcel was and think you were extremely rude for not collecting it

Your problem is with the delivery company, they were in the wrong

wherearethesnacks · 27/04/2026 22:01

The postman obviously just fired it through the wrong letterbox.

Strawberrydelight78 · 27/04/2026 22:05

When you said kept it I thought you meant they opened it and kept it for themselves. I've got someone else's parcel a few times. If we get home and find it then don't really have an issue popping it down our street. Otherwise I will drop it round before I go out if I remember.

DisappointedofMeryton · 27/04/2026 22:06

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 21:18

Surely it’s a bit strange to leave a card through the correct houses door, but then leave the envelope 8 houses down. An envelope that did not require a signature and can fit in the same letterbox that the card was posted through.

Yeah, okay everyone, guilty!!! Maybe it’s just me. Happy to be unreasonable here.

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If it didn't require proof of delivery, and could just be posted through the letterbox, then why did the postman take a photo proving delivery? Your postman/woman has made a mistake, your neighbour probably thought they were doing you a favour taking it in a parcel that had to be physically handed over, and were expecting you to collect it. The onus is not on your neighbour to second guess a delivery mistake. And I say this as someone who has turned into the parcel repository (not to mention bouquet holding service) for many houses around me, and who regularly does take things round to their houses when they don't come and collect.

Strawberry53 · 27/04/2026 22:07

They will have assumed you got a notice about where it had been sent to and were waiting for you to collect it. That’s the normal way things go. I understand you had to hunt it down and that was annoying, but that’s not their problem and sorry but they were not rude, probably just busy.

OttersOnAPlane · 27/04/2026 22:08

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 21:13

Thank you so much. This is exactly my point. Common sense prevails 👏🏻👏🏻🤣

Show quote history

Hell, if the postie handed my a parcel I'd take it and not realise it wasn't for me until I went to open it.

Then I'd set it on one side to either give back to the postie on Monday to correctly deliver or wait until I was passing to drop it off.

PuggyPuggyPuggy · 27/04/2026 22:14

moderate · 27/04/2026 21:20

If it's ended up 8 houses down the street, it's because the postie has made a mistake and delivered it to the wrong address - it's not a "will you take this parcel for your neighbour" job

Then why did the postie take a photo of the delivery, it rather than just posting it through the wrong letterbox?

Show quote history

Because he thought he was delivering it to the correct address. Same as when my sister accepted a parcel that was not for her or for me, but the postie didn't ask if we could take the not-at-all-next-door neighbour's parcel. Because he made a mistake. It was only hours later when I walked past the parcel, saw my first name on it, and thought "I haven't ordered anything from Boots",looked again, and realised it was a cock-up. The neighbour didn't know where it was, but had a message claiming it had been delivered. Not "left with a neighbour".

CoverLikelyZebra · 27/04/2026 22:14

Yabu. They aren't being paid to act as courier agents and they aren't obliged to do anything to your timescale, they didn't *keep" your parcel, they just didn't have any spare time yet. If you want your parcel asap, nominate your nearest parcel shop as the delivery address if you aren't going to be in on delivery day rather than expecting neighbours to do it for free.

PollyBell · 27/04/2026 22:19

No it was not rude of them maybe people are sick of being parcel delivery service as it is not their job

NoSoupForU · 27/04/2026 22:27

Are you actually taking the piss? I'm quite happy to take parcels in for people, but I'm not Postman fucking Pat so I won't be going out on delivery rounds with them.

The onus is on you as the person expecting the parcel to track it and collect it.

Catza · 27/04/2026 23:04

FrostedCandyAngel · 27/04/2026 21:13

Thank you so much. This is exactly my point. Common sense prevails 👏🏻👏🏻🤣

Show quote history

In your haste I think you failed to notice the poster saying that the letter may have been forgotten for days. Which you would consider to be rude

katseyes7 · 27/04/2026 23:35

I've taken in parcels for near neighbours before.
If they haven't come to collect it the same day, l put a note in their door saying it's at my address.
I've had at least 3 come to pick up, saying the courier hadn't put a card in their door.
I appreciate that not everyone can, or wants to do this, but l've had the reverse happen to me, a parcel left with someone, and the courier hasn't left any notification for me.

katseyes7 · 27/04/2026 23:39

Twice I've had a courier hand me a package, I was expecting one, opened it, and it wasn't what l'd ordered. And it wasn't addressed to me, it was for a house a few doors along.
Fortunately l live in a cul de sac and he was further into the estate, so l caught him on his way back. I've no idea how they explained to the correct recipient why their parcel had been opened.