CHARLOTTE COUNTY – It’s that time of the year again. Where we input our credit card numbers and do some online shopping hoping to bag a great deal.
No we’re not talking about the holidays, we’re talking about Amazon’s Prime Day.
“Prime Day kind of throws us for a loop where it’s outside of that holiday season, but we need to make sure that people are vigilant about the number of packages they might be getting to their house,” said Katie Heck, Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson.
Heck is warning the public of Porch Pirates being on the prowl for your Prime Day deals. She says there are several options customers have to make sure their packages are delivered safely.
“One of the things people don’t think about is having the package shipped to them at work, this is where we are all day most people are at their place of business,” said Heck. “Change that shipping address to your workplace and receive your package safely there so it’s not left unattended on your doorstep.”
Other options are installing a lock box for your porch, require a signature for items delivered, and installing security cameras to keep an eye on your package if delivered when you’re not home.
“Now thieves are getting more and more aware of seeing those types of things outside of homes and they are choosing somewhere else to go, so it kind of hardens your house as a target for these criminals,” said Heck
According to Statista.com in 2018 Prime day sales amounted to an estimated $4.19 billion in the U.S. with more than 100 million items that day.
“Our deputies are ready to be just doing a little extra patrol focused more on people’s doorstep and keeping an eye on where things might be left unattended,” said Heck.
Other options to keep your packages safe are renting an Amazon Hub Locker, leaving specific instructions for delivery, and always keep track of your items via the tracking number of your purchase. Prime Day is next week July 15th-16th.
