Tips to keep your parcels secure this festive season
NZ Post and Police are encouraging Kiwis to be extra vigilant as 2 million parcels are being delivered weekly in the lead up to Christmas.
“Our teams are working hard to deliver Christmas presents in time for Christmas Day and offer a range of delivery options to help our customers protect themselves from parcel theft,” NZ Post’s Strategic Contracts and Relationships General Manager James Purdie says.
James said those services include leave my parcel and collect my parcel.
"If you're not going to be home, there’s our leave my parcel service, where you can tell us a safe spot to leave your parcel on your property,” James says.
“Or alternatively you can have you parcel sent to one of our convenient locations around New Zealand for collection.”
Last week, NZ Post delivered over 400,000 items daily to Kiwis around the country.
With the high number of parcels being delivered due to the season of giving, police are continuing to urge the public to immediately report any thefts from letterboxes.
Counties Manukau East Area Prevention Manager, Inspector Rakana Cook says people are encouraged to keep an eye out for deliveries and clear their mailboxes regularly and are reminding people not to send gift-cards, vouchers and money through the post, in the lead-up to Christmas.
“We encourage anyone who has been the victim of dishonesty offending to report it as soon as possible,” he says.
“There are a number of actions people can take to protect themselves from mail theft, including sending parcels to a work address or ensuring you will be at home when they arrive.”
Other top tips to reduce the risk of mail theft include:
- Clear your letterbox in a timely manner
- Put a hold on your mail delivery if you’re going away
- Provide clear delivery instructions for couriers to leave a package safely hidden or secured within your property
- Install security cameras and/or security camera messaging near your letterbox or front of property
- Where practical consider click and collect over delivery
“If you see any suspicious activity, such as people loitering around letterboxes or properties, please contact police immediately by phoning 111,” Inspector Cook says.
Police also encourage people to join a neighbourhood support group as it can be a good way to deter theft, so more people in your neighbourhood can keep an eye out for suspicious activity.
James says instances of parcels being stolen after delivery is always disappointing.
If a parcel is stolen after NZ Post completes delivery of the item, the theft becomes a police matter and needs to be reported to the police.
“We encourage Kiwis to report any suspicious behaviour, such as individuals hanging around letterboxes, or vehicles acting suspiciously, to the police by phoning 105 or submit a 105 report online,” James says.
“We also communicate regularly with our delivery partners and remind them to take all the necessary procedures around security.”
We ask customers to contact us via our website as soon as possible if they do not receive a parcel they are expecting.
Sending cut-off dates
Parcels sent within New Zealand need to be sent by Monday 18 December for economy and by Wednesday 20 December for courier.
All parcels sent within NZ are tracked. You can check where your parcels are on their journey by heading to nzpost.co.nz and entering your tracking number.
Kiwis can find all the information they need about sending and receiving Christmas presents on our website.
More information:
Interviews:
Inspector Cook is available for interview on Monday or Tuesday between 9am-2pm.
NZ Post’s Strategic Contracts and Relationships General Manager James Purdie is available for interviews today or tomorrow at limited times.
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