MRM.COM : Colleagues on delivery will have noticed that more and more customers have fitted smart doorbells.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

https://www.myroyalmail.com/news/2020/02/show-and-bell

Colleagues on delivery will have noticed that more and more customers have fitted smart doorbells.

Smart doorbells are becoming increasingly popular as online shopping grows and customers expect their deliveries to be made regardless of whether they are at home or not.

These devices can connect to a customer’s mobile phone and can include a camera as well as an intercom function.

There are now several different manufacturers and companies who have developed and are selling this type of equipment. The technology can film or capture your image while also facilitating conversations between colleagues and the customer while the customer is not actually present at their doorstep.

Smart doorbells can start filming or capturing images when motion is sensed – which can be as you approach or enter the driveway or front garden area, and not just from when you physically press the doorbell. Please be aware that you could be filmed from the moment you enter the premises up until you leave and move onto the next delivery point.

Customers can record CCTV footage from their doorbell, so it is important to bear in mind that your actions and conversations with the customer may be recorded.

These devices can present some challenges and opportunities for colleagues on delivery, which is why it’s important for us to be aware of their features. It is also important that we are clear and polite in explaining to customers what we can and can’t do in regard to their requests.

Key facts:

Smart doorbells start filming when a motion sensor is triggered - this can be up to 10 metres away – and not simply when you press the bell.
Footage can be recorded by the customer.

Assume that you are being recorded when you are within range of the doorbell. Please ensure that you follow our procedures and are polite at all times.

If the householder asks you to do something with their parcel, make sure you follow the business policies:

Only leave a parcel if it has a SAFEPLACE instruction on the label.
Don’t deliver signature products without a signature (it is the poster who has paid for the signature).
You can deliver to a suggested neighbour – they are more likely to be in and to accept the package.
If customers are unhappy with what you are able to offer then politely explain that you are following company policies to keep mail secure.

If a customer’s footage of a colleague is uploaded online without consent and you are not happy, please email smartdoorbells@royalmail.com. We can then review the case and involve our Group Legal team where appropriate.

19 Feb 2020

[the shadow 36]

Think this is a ticking time bomb , this is easier said when your not in the firing line and having to explain to angry customers. The trouble is our competitors seem to leave packets wherever they want which then puts pressure on us as the customer expects us to do the same. Even if our standards seem better then our competitors and we follow proper procedure and don't leave the packet unsafe alot of customers will still be angry and complain and as more and more of these bells increase so will the complaints. Even though these complaints are unjustified i would assume dealing with the complaints will surely still cause a huge cost financially to the company which somewhere along the line affects us all.

[chickenwittle]

Customers don’t give a crap about our standards, they want their parcels delivered so that’s what I’ll be doing.

[theargyspy]

Thats quite old 19 Feb 2020

I know whenever I see one of those doorbells I just knock on the door, from past experience there was a terrible lag. I would ring, listen to a horrible jingle noise, write out a N/L post that and be three doors down the round before hearing "Hello?" coming from the doorbell

[Sundodger]

Perhaps the 739 card should be amended to include those policies for customers to review when no parcel is left:

We can only leave a parcel if it has a SAFEPLACE instruction on the label.
We don’t deliver signature products without a signature (it is the poster who has paid for the signature).
We can deliver to a suggested neighbour – they are more likely to be in and to accept the package.
If none of the above options are possible, your parcel will be returned to the Delivery Office.
Your Postperson will only be following company policies to keep mail secure

[grchpo]

If customer says leave the parcel in shed, garage etc then leave it. They will have footage of you leaving it & If somebody comes along & takes it they will have footage of that. Just do as they say then it's no problems.

[clashcityrocker]

If customer says leave the parcel in shed, garage etc then leave it. They will have footage of you leaving it & If somebody comes along & takes it they will have footage of that. Just do as they say then it's no problems.

One of the fundamental roles of a postperson is to secure the mail.
If you don't do that then your job is on the line.
If they have footage of you not securing the mail then they have footage of you not securing the mail. Nothing else.

[grchpo]

Follow customer instructions

[scoobymunster]

Follow customer instructions

We are always told that the CUSTOMER is whoever sent the item, not the person receiving. Funny how that definition can change when it suits

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Thats quite old 19 Feb 2020

It is, but we have a thread in Customers that's about these so I thought it best to post and remind people we have help as well.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Follow customer instructions

We are always told that the CUSTOMER is whoever sent the item, not the person receiving. Funny how that definition can change when it suits

It says that in the page on myroyalmail, and something I have always kept in mind. Plus when delivering where I do, its not safe to leave it outside for even a few minutes, so I don't.

[redneck]

Follow customer instructions

You will be sacked if managers don't like you and they have evidence you haven't followed proper procedures on camera footage

[zombiepostman]

Can someone tell me why its ok that i get filmed delivering to a property, but i must make sure when i take a picture of a packet at someones door i must not get the customer in it?

[twoloops]

I press it & start writing the 739 out while covering the lens with my mail, if they do answer & you do not like where they ask you to leave it, just keep saying sorry your breaking up, can’t hear you, deliver the 739

[yellowbelly]

Can someone tell me why its ok that i get filmed delivering to a property, but i must make sure when i take a picture of a packet at someones door i must not get the customer in it?

It's possibly because RM as a business would have to set up a process so that any public GDPR request could be met
regarding any photos of recipients. As well as genuine requests, this could involve requests where no identifiable
image is held or frivolous requests raised by perhaps the same individuals that post youtube video where they're filming
RM depots from public land for 'auditing' purposes. It would all take human resources, money, time etc. If the instruction is NOT to include
the recipient, any GDPR request can be batted back straightaway with no investigation required.

As far as I know a private individual taking images that are within the confines of their property and not invasive
doesn't have to do 'GDPR'.