As more people shop online, more people are finding themselves vulnerable to package theft and “porch pirates.”
Last year’s Cyber Monday really revealed potential issues with deliveries being left at your front door. Porch pirates became a very real problem and left a lot of people questioning the entire online buying process.
To combat this, Amazon floated the idea of giving delivery workers the ability to unlock our front doors via Amazon Key. This made a lot of people uncomfortable, so now Amazon has introduced the new Amazon Key for Garage.
Would you be comfortable giving Amazon or any other delivery company access to your locked garage? Here are the pros and cons.
The Pros
As we discussed above, local thieves now salivate at the sight of an unattended delivery box on your front step. This new technology would take your delivery off of your step and put it behind a locked door.
Of course, you’re not just protecting it from thieves, you’re also weather-proofing your delivery. Nobody wants their package to sit out in a rainstorm, waiting for you to get home; particularly if you’re receiving home electronics.
This type of service would keep your delivery safe and dry, while sending you an instant notification to confirm delivery. You would need a Wi-Fi enabled garage door opener, like a LiftMaster opener available from retailers like Doddsdoors.com right now.
This may be an easier sell and more appealing to people who scoffed at Amazon being able to unlock their front door. Most of the naysayers cited issues with their pets, their security, or their privacy. But unlocking the garage door may be a good compromise to them.
They are even more likely to jump on-board with the new technology if friends and family start to rave about their own experiences with it.
The Cons
If you’re not receiving regular packages, you may not see the value in paying to upgrade your garage door.
But, if you’re receiving frequent shipments or big-ticket items, you will probably see this as a way to protect your investment. Chances are the more money you spend online, the more you will want this.
Another con is that this may simply still be too intrusive for some people. They will just never love the idea of someone entering their home when they’re not there; whether it’s the garage or not. They won’t budge on the issue, their home is their castle.
They will still see this as a stranger entering a part of their home. They may have a vehicle, or expensive sporting goods and yard equipment stored in their garage.
It will be interesting to see how the public, as a whole, reacts to this. Amazon Prime is bigger than ever, with over 100 million subscribers. Many people have welcomed Amazon into their home with Alexa handling plenty of their day-to-day tasks.
But technological advancements like this typically split people into one of two camps:
“That’s amazing, I need that right now” or “That’s creepy and an invasion of privacy.”
Which side are you on? Sign me up, or stay out?