Hamilton woman has Christmas gifts stolen 2 days in a row. Here’s how to stop ‘porch pirates’ | CBC News
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A Hamilton woman says she is “mind-blown” after items she ordered for Christmas were stolen from her front porch twice in just over 24 hours.
Tylar-Leigh Corkum said she was waiting for a hat and track pants to arrive on Sunday, Nov. 10 while spending time with her kids at home in Hamilton’s Corktown neighbourhood.
She said the courier, Apple Express, left the $100 gift on her front porch just after 11 a.m., but there was no drop off notification or knock on the door.
Around 1 p.m., she realized it arrived and walked outside — only to see her porch empty.
“In under two hours it was gone, and I was home,” Corkum said. “My jaw dropped.”
The next day, she received a package delivered by Uni Uni on her front step and got the notification, but she was at work. Corkum said she saw the notification an hour later.
Her mother, who lives next door, went to pick it up but it was also stolen.
“I feel very violated because … somebody was that close to my front door,” she said. “The fact it happened twice makes me feel like it was targeted, maybe somebody is watching my house for packages.”
Package theft on the rise in Canada, survey shows
Corkum said she would’ve had the packages sent to a post office but not all online purchases, like the ones she made, have those options.
She said she didn’t contact local police because she had no evidence and felt they wouldn’t be much help. CBC Hamilton contacted Apple Express and Uni Uni for comment but didn’t immediately hear back.
Meanwhile, Hamilton police said in an email it’s important for people to report package thefts so officers can keep track of how often it is happening. The service also pointed to Operation Ama-gone, which led to officers laying 56 charges and arresting three people in 2021 related to package theft.
Corkum said she received refunds for some of the items but now doesn’t have the gifts she wanted to hand out for Christmas.
“My Christmas spirit is gone … I’m turned off by online shopping. I might stop,” she said.
She said she’s considering getting security cameras and said delivery people should have to knock on the front door or try to hide the package if possible.
FedEx Canada spokesperson James Anderson said survey data shows “porch pirates” are becoming more common.
Anderson said 28 per cent of the 1,507 Canadians who responded to their survey said they were the victims of package theft.
That’s up from 24 per cent in 2021 and 20 per cent in 2020.
“Nationally, 70 per cent of online shoppers are at least somewhat worried about package theft,” Anderson said in an interview.
The survey was conducted in early October from members of the Angus Reid Forum and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
What you can do to thwart porch pirates
Hamilton police offered tips for people expecting deliveries that include:
- Having your package delivered to your work.
- Arranging deliveries to relatives or friends you know will be home.
- Having the local post office hold your package.
- Having your package shipped to a store.
- Request a signature confirmation when your package arrives.
- Ask carriers to place packages out of plain sight.
Anderson, from FedEx, said anyone waiting on a shipment can use their tracking number to get a four hour window of when their delivery is expected. He added customers can provide instructions for the courier and also said if their package is stolen, they can file a police report.
Barbara Agrait, a spokesperson for Amazon, told CBC Hamilton people can pick up packages at Amazon locations, can choose a delivery date and two to four hour delivery window, and have the courier take a picture when the package arrives. She also said customers can provide instructions, like knocking on the front door, for the courier.
Canada Post spokesperson Phil Rogers said in an email, customers using their app can choose a safe location outside their home that isn’t their front porch, as long as couriers can get there safely. It also offers FlexDlivery, which allows people to have packages delivered straight to the post office.
UPS spokesperson Nicole Garbutt said customers can sign up for a free service called UPS My Choice which sends email alerts to notify you their package is scheduled to be delivered and allows people to choose where the package is delivered. Most deliveries also include photo proof of delivery.
WATCH: Hamilton woman has message for porch pirates and couriers
Tylar-Leigh Corkum said a porch pirate stole gifts from her twice in roughly 24 hours. She said one of those could’ve been prevented if the courier knocked on the front door when they dropped off her package.
Corkum said she has a message for whoever stole her Christmas gifts.
“You need to think about your actions before taking people’s stuff because those gifts have meaning to them, especially around this time of year.”
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