A longtime favorite Christmas TV show, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”, is really not so far off from this 21st century. In the TV show, Mr. Grinch simply does not like all that happiness and joy the Whos down in Whoville have when they celebrate the birth of the baby Jesus. However, he has no interest in stealing the material goods from the poor Whos which is the big difference between that Grinch and today’s Grinchy thieves.

With the on-demand delivery industry (i.e. InstaCart, Amazon, Roadie, etc.) becoming a big part of our everyday lives, so has the availability of free items sitting in plain sight for anyone to see. So much so that Amazon is rolling out Amazon Key, which works much like a Realtor’s lockbox for when you are selling your home. Sounds great, right? But do you want to let an Amazon delivery person in your front door?

Amazon will do everything in its considerable power to convince us that this service is ok, but most consumers will at least give pause to the thought of letting a delivery person just walk in our front door, especially at Christmas time. Here are 5 ways to make sure your delivered gifts remain yours to give rather than the thieves’ merchandise to fence.

• Get to know your drivers – UPS and FedEx drivers have established routes, so if possible take time and get to know them. Getting to know them is like getting to know your mail carrier which is always good.
• Designate a drop of spot – Once you know your drivers, you can ask them to deliver your packages to a spot that is not so obvious to thieves casing the neighborhood.
• Make sure someone’s home – Of course, this is the easiest solution, but most people cannot be at home when deliveries are made; however, because of the on-demand delivery business, many times we can designate when we’d like a package delivered.
• Talk to your neighbors – You may not be able to at home, but what about your neighbor? It’s easy to check, and to offer to do the same for them.
• Deliver to the office – If possible having packages delivered to your workplace will help avoid any possible theft situations. However, don’t forget your packages and leave them at work!
• Home security camera – For the same reasons that Amazon created Amazon Key, providers like Nest, Ring, and SimpliSafe offer doorbell cameras that capture any movement near your front door. When using one of these solutions, you will know when something is delivered. You will also know when someone steals something and what they look like.

Our lives are busy, especially during this time of the year.  If you cannot be there to retrieve your delivery then it is important to make other arrangements. Implementing at least one or two of these.