AIBU to complain after Amazon opened the door and my cat escaped?

[HelloDenise]

I had an email from Amazon saying that a package had been delivered. No photo. When I got home I found the back door open, the package inside the door and the cat gone.

If you don’t want someone to open a door, then lock it. Someone trying to deliver something is going to try the doors to see if you’ve deliberately left one open for them. They’re not going to know what room it is or be able to guess it wasn’t intentional.

Lock your door! You can’t leave it to chance that a delivery person will leave it open! My cats have been indoor since one was hit and killed. No outdoor access and no door left unlocked ever since. Priorities! Do not take the risk, protect your cat! And no random will be able to access your home and leave the door open!

I am with you on this 1000%

I had an incident with Amazon many years ago now, where I was home and upstairs with the front door unlocked. I was actually getting changed in the bedroom when I heard the front door open. I went into a blind panic as my husband was abroad, and my young son at school and there is NOBODY who would let themselves in my house.

I shouted hello a few moments later (was being silent to listen before that) to no avail and I heard someone scurry away. I threw my top on quick and ran down the stairs to see an amazon package in my living room. So not only had they opened the door but they had come in my (albeit exceptionally small) hallway and opened the door to my living room!!

I opened my front door to see the driver getting in his van and shouted him to ask what the hell he was playing at - he just shouted 'AMAZON PARCEL'. English was obv not his first language. I shouted 'did you just come in my house' and he repeated AMAZON PARCEL and got in his van and drove away.

I got straight on the phone to Amazon totally outraged. I thought my house was being broken into!!!

They apologised profusely and said he would be dealt with and paid for extra locks to be fitted to my front door!

Honestly you are right to be outraged and yes ok you left the door open but that is NOT the point! They shouldn't be trying it in the first place! How do you know that person was not of dubious morals?!

My sister lives in the US and delivery drivers often open the door to drop in a package. She locks when she’s not at home but I’ve been surprised more than once by some guy opening the door saying ‘delivery’! How did the guy know to go to your back door?

Being an Amazon driver is the modern equivalent of being a slave- I am sure if you have a job you don't have to pee into a coke bottle because of pressure from your billionaire boss- and that given in this situation all's well that ends well, I'd save my energy and remember to lock your front door.
As for blame for the escaped cat, I'd say it's 50/50.
Although it was both interesting and worrying to see how intense the AI reply was to your complaint.

This

@HelloDenise you asked AIBU, then complained within 30 mins. Amazon have just placated you, which will keep you happy.

The driver will carry on as he has, keep your door locked in future. Maybe a note in your front door, to remind you?

That's a bloody ridiculous statement. They were expected to leave it at the back door which is a safe place and has been used for years.

It takes more time to get inside the house than drop it outside the door.

Well, yeah. How’s the window cleaner going to clean the inside of my windows if the doors locked? My packages always get put in my porch - I’d be a bit surprised if they weren’t.
I reckon you’re 100% the type to complain if a package is left in view of the road too.
No harm, no foul. Cat isn’t missing. But at least you’ve probably secured a bollocking for someone. Win win!

I don't have a porch.

I've never known a window cleaner come inside anyone's house. Most people I know clean their own inside windows or a cleaner does that, who is actually invited into the house.

The cat may not have come back. It's not far from a very busy road. He's a young cat with no road sense.

I reckon you're "100% the type" to be dismissive and rude. Empathy, 0%.

I'm amazed that people think it's fine for uninvited strangers to walk into people's houses.

There was an incident recently where a delivery driver stole a customer's cat.

Why are you focusing on your impression that I would enjoy someone getting a "bollocking" rather than the fact I was alarmed and quite scared? Very bizarre reasoning.

I've been scared to death by Amazon doing this. Most of the time they haven't rung the bell just tried the door and chucked the parcel in. I have to keep the door locked now to stop DS escaping so they just leave it on the porch (although recently they seem to be better at ringing the bell).
I doubt much will come of complaining but I still think you were right to do so.

Maybe I should have phrased my post to ask if Amazon were being unreasonable to walk into my house rather than focusing on complaining. There seems to be a feeling that complaining is something people do for entertainment, because they've got too much time on their hands or are miserable people or something. Some replies are spectacularly missing the point, too, or being deliberately combative.

@MsGrumpytrousers

I think the OP is aware that doors need to be locked - she simply made a mistake and forgot to lock it.

@HelloDenise

It surprises me that some people are telling you that you need the lock the door - because you already know this and it was just by mistake that you left it unlocked.

I have an indoor cat and dread something like this happening.

Totally unacceptable but I had a similar spate of instances from Royal Mail.

We oved house a couple of weeks before lockdown and during that time used to leave the garage door unlocked and didn't mind if parcels were left in there as we were always at home.

After we returned to work we kept it locked but kept returning home to find it had been forced open. The lock was rickety and with some force the door could be opened so we put a padlock on it from the inside. We then returned home to find that the door had been forced off it's hinges by Royal Mail in order to leave a parcel just inside. Surely the fact that the door didn't open easily told them something. We have had it replaced now with a high security door.

@CrackInTheGlass

The OP knows that she should lock the door. I know you're trying to be helpful by telling her, but I think it's safe to say that that it's a warning she doesn't need. Some people seem to be under the impression that she knowingly left the door unlocked, when in fact she just forgot.

It's perhaps a reminder to the OP to try to remain absolutely focused when leaving the house (so that she's unlikely to forget again) but I don't think she needs to be told to lock the door. It's something she clearly does 99.9 percent of the time and this was just a one-off because she forgot.

Yes I just forgot. I always lock up but this time I simply forgot because I was in a hurry.

Really not ok for delivery drivers to do this and absolutely right to report it. Every time. They need to know this isnt ok unless they are given permission. I hope he does get a bollocking.

Particularly as hes risking his own safety - they risk having dogs attacking them (deservedly so) or a baseball bat or similar wrapped round their head.

Ive never in my life had a delivery driver do this. I dont live in a quaint village though 😬

@Bundleflower

A window cleaner would be entitled to come into someone's house if the home-owner was home at the time of their arrival. But they wouldn't be entitled to show up at an empty house and just walk in.

The OP made a mistake in forgetting to lock her door, but that doesn't give other people the right to enter the property if they realise it's unlocked. An exception would be if they presume that due to the door being unlocked, the homeowner is somewhere in the house, but even then, I'd say that they should knock or ring first.

@Bundleflower

OP said that her indoor cat escaped, so I'm sure that she was scared for his safety while he was missing.

We even had an Amazon driver leave our parcel inside next door neighbour's house! Houses are attached, NDN's door at the back, ours at the front. It was raining cats and dogs, it was easier/quicker to get to the back. NDN brought the parcel round to us, quite bemused by the fact that Amazon driver had obviously opened her door and put the parcel inside, instead of knocking and handing the parcel over, even if he had mixed up the house numbers/got lost. The house does not have a porch.
Amazon definitely need to provide better training.

Not everyone has a porch and certainly not by the back door. My parent put their porch as a safe place but they can leave it open and lock the door from the porch into the main house.

My front door leads directly into my hall and stairs. My back door leads directly into my kitchen.

No delivery driver should be opening someone's front or back door without explicit permission.

This. The door might not have been properly held on the catch and the cat managed to hook it open or the wind caught it as a pp suggested?

Not sure if I’ve missed this but did he put the parcel just inside the door did he put it somewhere that he couldn’t have reached without actually walking into your house? I don’t think I’d be as bothered if he just opened the door and chucked it in rather than actually setting foot inside your house. Still not great though given that your cat escaped! Id also have to be 100% certain that in handy left the door open myself before I’d lodge a complaint.

once had a delivery driver open the side gate to leave a parcel behind it (metal bar type gate so parcel still visible on the other side!) and didn’t close it properly so the dog got out!