An estimated 104 million packages were stolen in the U.S. over the past year, and 31% of people say they've experienced package theft in the last 12 months, according to SafeWise's 2025 Package Theft Report. As shipping volume climbs heading into the November-December holiday season, so does the opportunity for porch piracy.
Does UPS cover stolen packages? The distinction that trips people up
UPS, FedEx, and USPS each cap their default liability around $100 for a shipment with no declared value added -- but that coverage is for loss or damage while the package is in the carrier's custody. Once a package is scanned "delivered" and is later stolen from a porch, it's generally outside what the carrier is responsible for; FedEx's own policy explicitly excludes this scenario from its declared value coverage.
Package stolen after delivery insurance: what actually helps
If a carrier won't cover a post-delivery theft, two other paths are worth checking first: many credit cards include purchase protection that covers stolen items bought with that card, and some homeowner's or renter's insurance policies cover theft of personal property regardless of where it happened. Neither is guaranteed, so it's worth confirming your specific coverage before you need it, not after.
How to prevent package theft: what actually works
The most consistently recommended steps across delivery-security guides are signature-required delivery for valuable items, shipping to a workplace, locker, or pickup point instead of home, enabling delivery alerts (USPS Informed Delivery, UPS My Choice, FedEx Delivery Manager), and having a visible camera at the delivery spot. None of these require expensive equipment on their own.
Holiday package theft: why November and December matter most
Package theft risk isn't spread evenly across the year -- it clusters heavily around the holiday shopping season, when porches are fuller and thieves know it. Extra vigilance in these two months, even if you're relaxed about deliveries the rest of the year, covers the period where the odds are actually working against you.
The Package Theft Prevention Checklist turns these steps into a trackable checklist (saved only in your browser) and explains clearly what carrier liability does and doesn't cover -- no product or camera brand recommendations, just the facts.
Try the Package Theft Prevention Checklist →
Sources: SafeWise 2025 U.S. Package Theft Report; UPS, FedEx, and USPS official declared value / liability policy pages.
