I was amazed to learn that the USPS leaves packages on the door step, always. I mean this was a surprise to me because I grew up in the UK where said package would be stolen in short order, and then for the past 20 years living in the US I was in either apartments where there is no doorstep, or out in the wilds where the postman doesn't come within a few miles of your doorstep. I'd never been in a situation where the post office were able to leave a package on my stoop. But now we have an office location in town with a bone fide door step, right on a busy street and they leave packages in plain sight. When I expressed surprise I was told this is standard procedure for the USPS everywhere. I have a security camera pointed at the door step and so far no thief has stepped forward to have their picture taken...
This reminds me of a segment on Top Gear (the BBC TV show for those unaware) in which Jeremy Clarkson is lamenting that having a pickup truck in the UK would result in your belongings in the bed being stolen when stopped.
For what it's worth, I have ordered many online items (100+) over the last several years, and every one has been left on my doorstep by USPS or UPS. The only time I have had a package stolen was during a summer I spent in a notably dangerous area. The rest of the orders were safely delivered, in my case to a college-town apartment or a suburban family home.
Fair enough, but counterpoint: I live in a vintage building on a busy street, and the USPS carriers never leave packages on our doorstep. Each apartment has put up a little sign on their front door indicating how they'd prefer packages left (on the stairs, out back, whatever), which the postal workers all adhere to.
I see them walking past my window, from the front of the building to the back, all the time.
