When an Amazon Driver Broke Down My Gate, This Device Would Have Saved Me $500

CNET

02-07-2025

I was home working upstairs when a loud thud in the backyard startled me. I guessed it was an enthusiastically dropped package, but I couldn't have imagined the full scope of the incident that originated the noise.
After I made my way downstairs to investigate, I found the double chain link gate on the side of my house had been kicked in by an Amazon delivery driver seemingly unable to figure out the simple butterfly latch. The brute force entry busted the gate's wooden frame, necessitating a repair that requires carpentry skills I don't possess.
How I found my gate after an Amazon driver busted their way through it.
David Watsky/CNET
Two damning pieces of evidence -- my Amazon packages -- were dropped few yards inside the gate. To make matters worse, the driver left both gates wide open, leaving my yard susceptible to a canine escape.
I reported the damage and filed a claim with Amazon
Incredibly, the delivery driver didn't even bother to close the gate they had just then broken down.
David Watsky/CNET
Naturally, I reported the incident through the retailer's online incident portal and contacted Amazon customer service by phone. A polite woman instructed me to file a claim. I did so within a day, including the repair cost estimate of $500 that I had secured from a local handyman, the Amazon package delivery timestamp and several photos of the busted gate, also timestamped moments after the packages were delivered.
The claims department said it would render a decision "within a couple of days."
Despite all the evidence, Amazon wouldn't pay
A week and one follow-up email later, Amazon replied and informed me that without visual evidence of the incident, they wouldn't be reimbursing me for the damage.
With no video evidence of the Amazon driver busting my gate to deliver a package, I was on my own to have the broken frame fixed.
David Watsky/CNET
After a healthy bout of cursing this decision from the 2.37 trillion-dollar-company, I decided I'd outfit every entry point of my yard and home with a security camera with video storage so I could pull footage if something like this happened again -- though my canceled account ensures that it won't be at the hands of Amazon.
A cheap video camera would have saved me $500
A security camera can protect you against more than just package theft and break-ins.
David Priest/CNET
For me, this was a no-brainer. Security cameras can cost as little as $45 for the base unit and $5 or less per month for storage. Beyond safety for yourself, family, pets and packages, these affordable smart home devices may save me a headache in any number of scenarios from overzealous delivery workers with gate latch ineptitude to falling trees planted in a neighbor's yard.
I grew up in a no-lock home, and to this day don't fear violent breaking and entering, naive as that might be. But the experience of a likely underpaid and overworked delivery person causing (probably) unintentional, but significant, damage to my less than one-year old home was reason enough to cover my bases. I've since ordered a video camera to point at the side gate entry, in addition to the Roku video doorbell already fastened to my front door (which was of no use in this situation).
So where to find the best home protection at a price I could stomach? Our home security expert Tyler Lacoma has tested all the top video doorbells and home security cameras available in 2025. He recommends the versatile Arlo Pro 5S -- $120 for the camera and $8 per month for storage -- as the best overall, so I promptly ordered it.
Best Buy dropped it gently on my steps a few days later.