Scots are shopping online more than ever and with Christmas well and truly on the way you may find you're receiving a lot more packages to your door as you search for the perfect gift.

If you're not at home when they call you might request for the delivery driver to put the parcel in a safe place, but what happens when those parcels go missing?

Do you have any rights? Who is to blame? Are you entitled to compensation?

To make things even more complicated, who is responsible can vary depending on the contract you have with the delivery company.

Who is responsible if my parcel is stolen from a 'safe place' I requested?

If you are opting for parcel to be left in a safe place, as a consumer you are deciding on the way it is to be delivered.

It's viewed for that point that you on are taking on the risk, not the retailer.

It is likely that, if the parcel has been delivered correctly on the retailer's end, they will not offer to replace the parcel.

What happens if my parcel was left in a place I didn't permit and it was stolen?

A retailer has breached their contact with you if a parcel they left at your property without specific instruction has been stolen.

The items should be replaced under consumer rights.

Just don't unwittingly agree to safe place delivery when accepting a retailer's terms and conditions though as the responsibility would fall back on you.

What about the company's terms and conditions?

Many online retail companies will mention safe place delivery in their terms and conditions.

Some companies will leave your parcel with a neighbour or in a safe place by default when you are not in, unless you specify otherwise. If you click 'accept' to a retailer's terms without reading then properly, you could be agreeing to safe place delivery without realising.

If your parcels are then stolen, the retailer may not accept responsibility.

What delivery information with the retailer?

Under your account details sometimes retailers will have details about delivery preferability. It's always worth checking before placing an order what you have agreed to when opening at account with that retailer.

Usually in this section you can be more specific e.g is your safe place in the wheelie bin or behind a plant pot?

And you may wish to remove authorisation for safe place delivery for higher value items.

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