Shopee customer says delivery driver left parcel outside home despite ‘do not leave at door’ instruction
A resident in Singapore raised concerns over Shopee’s delivery standards. He alleged that a delivery driver left a parcel outside his home at night, despite clear instructions not to do so. Shopee, however, has clarified that the delivery driver was following Shopee’s existing policies and procedures.
On 28 Nov, Mr Sikkanthar Thernoorkhan took to the Complaint Singapore Facebook group to highlight this incident. He told MS News that the delivery occurred the night before, at about 10.11pm on 27 Nov.
Source: COMPLAINT SINGAPORE on Facebook
Delivery driver allegedly left parcel outside door at night
According to Mr Thernoorkhan, his household explicitly selected the option “Do not leave at door” when placing the Shopee order and paid extra for proper delivery.
A screenshot in his post shows the delivery driver messaging him at 7.28pm to say the parcel would arrive that evening. The driver sent another message at 10.10pm, claiming he had “safely delivered” the item.
However, Mr Thernoorkhan said no one rang the doorbell or knocked on the door.
When he later checked outside, he found the parcel allegedly left in the open, outside the home, not securely placed inside the gate or doorway.
Source: COMPLAINT SINGAPORE on Facebook
Mr Thernoorkhan messaged the driver at 12.43am on 28 Nov, stating that the delivery was “very poor”.
He also questioned how the driver could call the delivery safe when he left the parcel outside without trying to alert the household.
In response to media enquiries, a Shopee spokesperson told MS News that the company completed the delivery in line with existing policies and procedures, which it communicates to buyers at checkout.
MS News understands that Shopee’s existing policies and procedures do not require drivers to ring the doorbell. Unless buyers instruct otherwise, the delivery person will not ring the doorbell to avoid disturbing the household.
Not the first time, says customer
However, Mr Thernoorkhan said this was not an isolated incident.
He said he had faced similar delivery issues before and that this was the second occurrence within the same week. He added that delivery staff leaving parcels outside homes appear to have become normalised, even for food deliveries.
Source: COMPLAINT SINGAPORE on Facebook. Photo for illustrative purposes only.
“These instructions were very important because leaving a parcel outside is unsafe,” he said. “Anyone could take it, and I would lose both the item and the additional delivery fee I paid.”
“When I select ‘do not leave at door,’ I expect the instruction to be strictly followed.”
Disappointment with Shopee’s response
After reporting the issue, Mr Thernoorkhan said Shopee’s response was slow and largely unsatisfactory.
“Shopee’s response was slow and disappointing,” he said. “They just repeated standard scripted replies with no real accountability or assurance that this will be prevented in the future.”
According to him, this lack of accountability contributes to repeated lapses in delivery standards.
“This reflects a larger problem in the delivery culture here, where outside placement is considered acceptable no matter the situation,” he said.
Source: COMPLAINT SINGAPORE on Facebook
Customer says, ‘this experience has affected my trust’ in Shopee
Sikkanthar said he hopes Shopee and its delivery partners will take more precise steps to improve reliability.
This includes enforcing “Do not leave at door” instructions, penalising drivers who falsely mark deliveries as safe, and requiring drivers to ring the doorbell or knock before completing a delivery.
He added that delivery staff should provide photo or video proof of delivery only after attempting to contact the recipient.
“This experience has affected my trust,” he said. “When instructions are ignored, and companies don’t follow up properly, customers feel unsafe ordering valuable items.”
Shopee: Customers to leave delivery preferences ‘by replying to the delivery notification’
A Shopee spokesperson told MS News that they have reviewed the matter with their third-party logistics partner.
The spokesperson said Shopee confirmed that the partner completed the delivery in line with existing policies and procedures.
The spokesperson added that Shopee communicates these policies and procedures to buyers at checkout.
Source: COMPLAINT SINGAPORE on Facebook
“If buyers would like the doorbell to be rung or have specific preferences for how parcels are handed over, they may indicate this in the order remarks or by replying to the delivery notification.”
“We are in touch with the buyer to assist with any further questions,” the spokesperson said. “And we will continue working closely with our third-party logistics partners to improve communications around delivery expectations.”
“We remain committed to ensuring a reliable and positive delivery experience for all users.”
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Featured image adapted from COMPLAINT SINGAPORE on Facebook.
