It is quite possible that you have heard of one or more occasions when the postman or postwoman has been attacked and sometimes bitten by a dog when delivering post and/or parcels to some peoples’ homes. The same thing could happen to some courier drivers. In fact, as a large percentage of couriers come face to face with customers at their front doors, it is possibly more likely that they are going to come face to face with the customer’s dog.

So, what can dog owners do when they are expecting a courier to deliver a parcel to their home?

Well, it would be a sensible idea to make sure that the dog is kept well away from the front door when the courier arrives- perhaps put it in the back garden.

Make sure that the dog cannot get around the front of the house when the courier arrives to deliver a parcel.

You could put your dog in a room in the house with food and water and close the door of the room so that it cannot come into close proximity to the courier.

Courier drivers may want to think twice of approaching the front door if they see or hear the dog come to the door with the owner. Feel free to ask the owner to take their dog out of the way before delivering a parcel.

It is interesting to read that in 2019/2020 there were 2,445 dog attacks reported on postal workers in the UK but this dropped to 1,690 dog attacks in 2020/2021. Obviously, these figures are concerning so perhaps greater awareness should be provided to dog owners in relation to what they should do when about to receive a parcel delivery.

If you run your own courier business then do bear in mind that if you are attacked by a dog and suffer a serious injury you could be unable to work for an extended period of time thus affecting your income so do take care.