Safe from Scams: Holiday Package Theft

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The holiday rush is over but ordering items online and having them delivered to your home can still be risky.

"I had ordered a kitchen set for my son," theft victim Tacie d'Albenas said.

This mother of two often orders items online for her children and has never been concerned about packages being stolen. "And I wasn't really too worried about the delivery because I was home most of the time," d'Albenas said.

But just two days away from Christmas, there was still no package. "I got nervous," she said. "So, I looked online to check the tracking and it said it had been delivered, so I thought that was strange."

She called authorities and found two people had been arrested for stealing packages in the area. Obviously, this time someone else got it before I noticed it was on the step.

Christmas was saved because the company sent a new toy kitchen set overnight, but Stacie says she learned an important lesson.

As postal inspectors suggest, always get some sort of tracking on your packages. "Make sure that either a neighbor can come over and pick it up or that it's delivered to an address where somebody is present," USPS inspector Blanca Alvarez said. "So that it's not left out front, because if it's left out front then it could be potentially stolen.

You can also ask for verification of delivery. Another option, request that your package only be delivered if someone signs for it.

If you're not home, the carrier will not leave the package.