December 10, 2014

You’ve seen the videos on the news: package thieves caught in the act of grabbing holiday presents right off people’s doorsteps.

If you don’t want to sit at work or on vacation worrying if your packages will be there when you get home, here are a few steps you can take, courtesy of FedEx:

• Consider an alternate destination. 
  When you order something online, consider sending the package to your workplace, or to a family member, friend or neighbor — someone who you know will be there to receive it.
• Send it to a carrier’s office location to be held for you.
• Request a signature.
  Many packages today are sent without requiring a signature for delivery. If you’re shipping something of high value — or you just want to be sure items aren’t left unattended — you can require a signature for packages to be released.
• Request a vacation hold.
• Leave delivery instructions.
  If it’s an option, leave one-time-only or standing instructions for where you want your deliveries, such as at the back door or with the apartment office.
• Customize your deliveries.
  All the major carries offer options for you to manage your deliveries, often in real time, from the moment they leave the warehouse. FedEx has Delivery Manager, UPS offers My Choice and the U.S. Postal Service uses My USPS.com. Sign up to get an alert when a package is going to be delivered and reroute it to be held at an office, reschedule the delivery, give instructions on a safe spot to leave it or just ask a neighbor to go grab it when it arrives.

Some of these services cost extra, so check with your carrier.