Deliveries in the condominium: how to receive them without opening the door to anyone
4 min read
By Henrique Weiand, founder of abriu
In many condominiums, the door that opens most often during the day is the one that receives deliveries. A courier holding a bag is rarely stopped, and that trust is exactly what creates the risk. Organizing how packages are received is one of the decisions that most changes the front desk's security, and it has little to do with technology.
Why deliveries are the weak point
Delivery volume has grown a lot, and front desks haven't kept up. App couriers spend a few seconds at the gate, they are in a hurry, and often nobody checks with the resident whether the delivery was expected at all. When the doorman lets them through to the apartment, a stranger walks around the building with no record whatsoever.
The courier isn't the problem. The problem is the condominium not having a clear rule about how far a delivery goes, and leaving the decision to whoever is on shift at that moment.
The most important rule: deliveries stop at the front desk
The decision that reduces risk the most is to establish that deliveries do not enter the building. The courier leaves the package at a reception point, and the resident picks it up there. That goes for boxes, groceries and food. Exceptions, such as furniture and appliances, can be arranged in advance and escorted.
For the rule to work, the reception point has to actually exist:
- A counter or window at the front desk, when there is an employee, with a record of who dropped it off and for which unit.
- Smart lockers, which notify the resident and release the door with a code, with nobody on duty.
- A package room with controlled access, where the resident enters with their own face or card and the courier does not.
Food delivery without granting access
Food is the most sensitive case, because it arrives at any hour and the resident wants it fast. The usual solution is for the resident to come down to the gate, which solves security but is a nuisance at night and in the rain. Alternatives that keep control: a covered outdoor counter, a heated locker or a meeting point inside the first door, before the elevator area.
When the condominium has a mantrap, the courier waits in the area between the two gates and the resident meets them there. The second gate does not open for anyone who is not enrolled.
Whatever the solution, it has to be communicated to residents in advance and repeated during the first weeks. The rule only works when the person ordering dinner knows where it will end up, and when the doorman knows not to make exceptions because the courier insists.
When the delivery has to come up
Moves, furniture assemblers, internet technicians and home repairs are deliveries that need to come in. For those, the path is the same as for any visitor: the unit notifies the front desk in advance, the person enters with an invitation that expires, and the access is recorded.
It's also worth setting rules for hours and for the use of the service elevator, so a contractor's entry doesn't turn into an argument on the day. When the rule is written down, the doorman doesn't have to decide alone, and the resident knows what to expect.
What the access system solves and what it doesn't
Access control helps on three fronts: it stops the door from being opened for anyone without an enrollment or an invitation, it records who came in and when, and it lets the resident create an invitation with an expiry for a courier who needs to go past the front desk. What it doesn't do is receive the package, check the order or tell the resident the bag has arrived.
That's why receiving deliveries has to be a decision of the condominium, written down and communicated to residents. Technology enforces the rule, but it doesn't replace it.
How Abriu handles it
At Abriu, the doors open for people who are enrolled and for people with a valid invitation, with a 6-digit PIN or a QR code on terminals that have a reader. A resident with dashboard access creates the invitation for the assembler or the technician, sets the time window, and the hub removes the invitation from the terminals when it expires. The entry shows up in the history alongside the residents' own.
Abriu doesn't manage packages or delivery lockers. It makes sure the door doesn't open for a courier without an invitation and that, when it does open for someone, it's recorded. Receiving deliveries remains a rule of the condominium, and Abriu enforces it at the door.