How to make your ‘safe place’ safe
We all lead busy lives, so it's fair to say you can't always be waiting around for a parcel collection. This is especially pertinent if you're sending lots of packages each week from your online business, as it's going to add up to a lot of waiting!
Thankfully, here at ipostparcels we offer a handy service where you can leave your parcel in a designated 'safe place' for our driver to collect. But how to go about picking a safe place and what can you do to ensure it is truly safe? Hopefully these tips below will help you pick a secure spot; all of these tips can also apply when choosing a safe place for deliveries too!
What should a good safe place consist of?
Weatherproof - first and foremost make sure your safe place is weatherproof. If your parcel is packaged in a cardboard box you're not going to want it getting soggy before it's even left your front door step as you'll likely have a very unhappy customer - not to mention a confused delivery driver if ink on the address has run. Make sure any paperwork is also kept securely and cannot blow away or get damp.
Out of sight- sadly not everyone can be trusted in this day and age, so it's wise to pick a location that will keep your package out of sight until your driver comes to collect it.
Easy for driver to find- for all the safety concerns of leaving your package out of sight, you still need to ensure your chosen hiding place is not too tricky for the driver to access. This means no high fences to vault or super muddy bog-like lawns. Make sure it is obvious too, so if you have advised 'it's hidden in the large flower pot', make sure there is only one large flower pot nearby.
What kind of places work?
Porch- if you are lucky enough to have a covered front porch then tucking your parcel inside, perhaps behind a plant pot, is the ideal solution. Just make sure if your porch is lockable that you don't secure it!
Shed or greenhouse- if you have a handy shed or greenhouse that is easily accessible on your property then this can provide a dry and reasonably secure option for your parcel to await collection.
Recycling box or rubbish bin- a surprisingly common choice this idea works well as long as you know for certain it's not collection day! If you will be away for a few days then it's not recommended; it's not worth the risk, just in case our driver is unable to collect for whatever reason. Not everyone's ideal solution and obviously if your bin is pretty smelly then avoid it, as you, your customer and our drivers will not want to handle a stinky parcel!
Delivery/collection box with key safe- one of the safest methods, these boxes are soaring in popularity - with good reason. Providing you leave the safe code in your collection instructions, then the driver will easily be able to collect your parcel and you can rest easy knowing your parcel will be safe and dry until then. As they involve a key being hidden inside a coded lock, all you need to provide the driver with is the code to make accessibility a breeze - whilst security goes uncompromised.
Wherever you choose as your safe location, make sure that ipostparcels are aware of it, and remember that this collection option is not available for international packages.
You can find out more information regarding delivery parcels.