DHL - Maybe I'm a tad paranoid but....

[MaxxPower]

Ok, I came home today and I had a DHL card through my letterbox. There was no name or parcel number on the card, however there was a mobile phone number and some text saying "Address only"

 

Now I called the number, and a woman answered who seemed to be in a van or car with another guy who was the delivery driver.

 

Now what's odd about this is that the driver said he was out of the area, but I could go to his home address (about 6 miles from my house) to collect my parcel. This strikes me as....odd. Should a delivery driver be taking my parcel home? Should he be asking me to come to his home address to collect it? He said he was on his way back to the depot at the time I called him, and when I asked about the parcel being left at the depot he said it has to have a failed delivery 3 times before it can be left there.

 

Maybe I'm just being too paranoid but still....something about all this just strikes me as rather....odd. The guy has said I can go to his house and collect the parcel after 6pm tonight, but I'm just a tad wary of going really.....

[cavorting]

I think that's suspicious, doesn't sound professional. Ask them to re-deliver it and if they 'accidently' don't, wait until they deliver it at the depot.

Do you know what company they are calling from? Ring the official depot

Ask for their names, and if they do have a parcel for you it will obviously have your name and address on, so asking them for that may catch them out if they randomly put it through your door. (Unless they already know your name) - ask if it has a return address on and if so do you recognise it?

Also, ask your neighbours because they may have had similar ones.

It could be genuine, but most delivery companies leave professional notes

[barracad]

You're right it doesn't seem very professional at all, and I'm not sure what DHL's official stance is on it, but surprisingly it is actually common practice.

 

DHL have an operation called 'DHL@HOME' and they give parcels to drivers who work on a self-employed basis, using their own car or van. Some of the couriers try to encourage you to collect it from their home address if a delivery is failed, the reason being is that DHL pay them a flat rate of 65p per parcel for delivery - regardless of how many times they have to try to redeliver it to you, so it's not cost effective for them to do what they are supposed to be doing!

 

If you don't want to collect it from his house then do insist that it is redelivered to you.

[MaxxPower]

Indeed it does appear to be standard procedure. I contacted DHL customer support who advised me that their DHL@home delivery drivers can, at their discretion, take parcels to their homes and offer customers a pickup there. So it appears that it is official policy for this to be done.

Since it wasn't far and since there'll be nobody in the house during regular delivery times all this week I did pop by and pick it up, which went smoothly so there weren't any issues. It just struck me as a rather odd thing for DHL to do really, especialy with their being no name or parcel number on the card (which were both on the actual parcel, so it seems to have been more a case of laziness when the guy was writing the card)

[lainie1966]

be very careful with DHL one of their delivery drivers stole my new phone 3 weeks ago. they said it was either 1 of 2 drivers and both denied it.