One out of 10 Canadians had packages stolen in the past year: survey

How people are fighting back against porch piracy From doorbell cameras to parcel tracking, both Canadians and delivery companies are changing tactics to make porch piracy unattractive.

One out of 10 Canadians say they have had at least one package stolen in the last year, according to a survey.

FedEx's Holiday Package Theft Survey, with 1,517 Canadians surveyed from Oct. 9 to 11 through Angus Reid, found 67 per cent of shoppers are worried about package theft. The survey also found 19 per cent of shoppers experienced package theft in their lifetime.

Last year, the FedEx survey found the number of people who experienced package theft was 16 per cent.

Adam Reider told CTV News Montreal he had his packages stolen from his doorstep recently, but when a neighbour called police, he actually got them back.

"[They said] some of your packages were stolen. I just wanted to let you know some good news that we found the people, we've arrested them, and we have your stuff. And I was like, what? I couldn't believe it. That never happens" said Reider.

Being reunited with stolen packages is rare.

FedEx Communications Advisor James Anderson said porch piracy is declining as consumers become more aware of the problem and couriers work harder to prevent it, like delivery drivers ensuring they're not being followed.

"We do monitor that, but we don't want to give out too much information as we don't want to tip off the porch pirates," said Anderson.

To prevent package theft, use package tracking, send parcels to a work address or redirect them to a trusted friend, family member or courier location.

Use photo proof delivery confirmation and give courier delivery instructions. Anderson said that through the FedEx app, for example, you can communicate directly with the driver if you have a special request.

"You can tell the driver where to hide the package and we want to follow instructions so we can stem this tide," said Anderson.

In the event you have a package stolen, you should file a police report and work with the online retailer and the courier to get a refund.

Amazon recently introduced a service to prevent porch piracy. With Amazon Key, and your permission, drivers can open your garage door, drop off the package and close it again.

With files from CTV News Montreal's Christine Long