Accepting and Opening Packages
Whether you’re ordering food from a local restaurant, groceries for the week or items off of Amazon, packages are touched by many people before arriving at your doorstep. Here are some tips on how to safely and responsibly receive your deliveries to your apartment or townhome.
Request Contact-Free Delivery
Most couriers and food delivery services have already started implementing contactless delivery to limit in-person interactions. Delivery people will either leave your package outside your door and knock to let you know it’s there or leave it in the shared mailroom for you to pick up yourself. Canada Post is also taking extra precautions by no longer requesting signatures when they drop off packages.
If the place you are ordering from isn’t already offering contactless delivery, you can most likely request this in the “special instructions” area when you place your order.
Open the Package Outside
The World Health Organization has stated that the virus may live on surfaces for a few hours to several days. For this reason, it may be a good idea to open your packages outside or on your balcony. When doing so, use gloves to open the package and put the cardboard box or packaging in an outdoor recycling bin, and wipe down the contents with disinfectant before bringing them inside.
Get Rid of the Packaging
Once you’ve taken your items out of its packaging, dispose of the bag or box as soon as possible. Take it to an outside garbage bin or to your community garbage or recycling room. You can then sanitize any of the surfaces in your home that the packaging touched.
With a few smart precautions, we can help minimize the risk of bringing the virus into our homes.
Sources: