With over 60 per cent of Brits now shopping from Chinese marketplaces such as Temu and Shein, there’s been an increase in potentially dangerous creatures arriving accidentally in UK homes. Parcelhero warns Brits to be on their guard
Written by Parcelhero’s head of consumer research, David Jinks M.I.L.T.
In the past few weeks, several cases of stowaway scorpions in packages from China have hit the headlines. After ordering a fashion bargain from Shein, a student in Bristol discovered a sting in the tail when a highly venomous scorpion was also found in the box. Similarly, after ordering a treadmill from Amazon, a couple from Basingstoke found one in their third-party order from China.
Now international delivery specialist Parcelhero is warning Brits buying online from overseas sellers to be cautious when opening packages in case unwelcome creatures have crawled their way inside.
More shoppers than ever are now using online marketplaces to order products direct from China. Almost half the number of Brits who shop online have bought items such as household goods from Temu (43 per cent), 42 per cent have ordered fashion from Shein, 25 per cent have purchased accessories and other goods from TikTok Shop and 22 per cent have received products such as electronics from AliExpress.
But for some there has been more than they bargained for inside. An expert told the BBC this week that there appears to have been a “worrying” increase in cases of potentially dangerous creatures lurking inside packages from China, with three venomous scorpions appearing to have been shipped in the last month.
Chris Newman, from the National Centre for Reptile Welfare (NCRW), told the BBC: “We’ve had 200 stowaways this year. Twelve have been scorpions and three of those have been within the last month – the same species of scorpion from China.”
Of course, thousands of e-commerce parcels arrive daily from China into the UK, so this is proportionately a very small amount. However, the fact that any parcel may potentially contain something a lot scarier than Halloween lights is something online shoppers should keep in mind.
Trade with China is accelerating rapidly. For example, in less than two years since its UK launch, Temu has already become a favourite site of online shoppers. However, people should exercise some caution when opening parcels from countries where potentially dangerous creatures may be found. Scorpions, for example, have a very slow metabolism and use very little oxygen, so they don’t need much ventilation. That means if one of these creatures crawls into a box in China, the chance of it surviving the journey is quite high.
If you are at all concerned about a parcel, particularly if you have a pet that seems to be very interested in it, perhaps barking or scratching at the package, it’s best to take precautions:
- Never touch a creature you are unfamiliar with by hand
- Try to trap the animal under a glass or in a plastic container
- Never release any unknown creature in your garden. It is actually an offence, under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, to release a non-native creature into the wild
- Contact an expert. For example, the National Centre for Reptile Welfare can be found at https://www.ncrw.co.uk/stowaways
- If you are confronted by a potentially dangerous animal you can call the RSPCA hotline: 0300 1234 999. The RSPCA has specialist animal collection officers
- Finally, as well as an emergency collection service for dangerous animals, the National Centre for Reptile Welfare has 100 drop-off points for animals. Never send a potentially dangerous live animal of any kind by post or general courier