How shoppers can outsmart porch pirates this season

You've spent hours tracking down a bargain in the sales, or sourcing the perfect Christmas gift for that hard-to-please relative.

- Katie Rosseinsky, The Independent

A few days later, it's nowhere to be seen, but the courier company claims it's been “safely” delivered. Then a neighbour mentions they spotted someone roaming the street with a suspicious stack of brown parcels, and you realise you've fallen victim to a “porch pirate”. Porch piracy — the act of pinching packages that are left outside on the doorstep, or in a so-called “safe place” — is becoming more common. According to data from tech company Quadient, sourced through Freedom of Information requests, £666.5m worth of parcels were stolen across the UK over the last year - an increase of £290m from 2024.

Quadient's stats also suggest that 4.83 million homes have had at least one delivery taken, marking a 31 percent rise from the previous year, while the average value of a stolen parcel has now reached £138. December is the peak month for doorstep thieving, doubtless due to the festive gift-buying rush, with November in a close second place, probably thanks to the bounty of Black Friday and Cyber Monday purchases.