A tenant in a Greenwich Village apartment building says he buzzed in what he thought was a routine Amazon delivery on Aug. 26 — and instead watched his building's hallway camera capture the driver relieving himself all over the lobby, soaking a chair, a table and a pair of shoes in the process.
The tenant, identified only as Donny, a 30-year-old resident of the four-story building near Bleecker Street and Carmine Avenue, told the New York Post that he buzzed the driver into the building around 3 p.m. that day. Ring footage showed the driver, wearing a light blue-and-gray Amazon delivery uniform, looking around the hallway before urinating in the space, according to the outlet's report.
Donny said the driver's mess splashed over shoes, a chair and a table, all of which he ended up throwing out because they were soaked in urine. He described the incident to the Post as foul, and said he now checks his camera feed every time an Amazon driver rings his doorbell — a habit born partly out of concern for his 5-year-old nephew, who often visits the building.
Amazon's Response and a Refused Gift Card
Per Donny's account to the Post, Amazon called the incident horrible and offered him a $50 gift card, which he refused. He told the outlet he fears another delivery driver could repeat the same behavior in the building.
Amazon has not identified the driver involved, and the company said the person was not directly employed by Amazon, instead working for an independent Amazon delivery service partner, the retail giant told the Post. Amazon spokesperson Leigh Anne Gullett said the incident did not reflect the company's standards for its delivery service partners, and confirmed the driver is no longer delivering Amazon packages, according to the report.
A Lawyer Weighs In
Cary London, an attorney at Fredson Statmore Bitterman, told the Post the firm is exploring possible litigation against Amazon over the incident. London said any action would seek both a change in Amazon's policies and monetary compensation, per the outlet's reporting.
Amazon has said its delivery service partners are expected to give drivers break time, along with restroom locations made available through the Amazon Delivery app, and route time built in for restroom stops or longer breaks, according to KXAN. Delivery routes are also supposed to include a 30-minute lunch break along with two additional 15-minute breaks, per the Post's reporting.
Worker Accounts Describe a Different Reality on the Road
Not everyone describes those breaks as easy to use. Multiple Los Angeles-area delivery drivers told LAist, as relayed by KXAN, that it was common for drivers to urinate in bottles rather than fall behind schedule while hunting for a restroom. Reviews posted to Indeed describe similarly tight conditions, with one reviewer writing of 10- to 12-hour days where drivers skip breaks or lunch entirely to finish routes, and another complaining that finding a bathroom takes precious time off route. One Indeed reviewer working the Bronx reported handling between 320 and 480 packages in a single day.
Three Colorado delivery drivers sued Amazon in 2023, alleging the company's tracking and work practices made it nearly impossible to pause for even a few minutes without risking discipline, according to KXAN. Separately, a class-action lawsuit was filed in King County Superior Court on behalf of Amazon drivers alleging inadequate rest and meal breaks, as reported by MyNorthwest. That lawsuit claims Amazon failed to pay drivers 10 minutes of extra pay for each missed break as required under state law, and that drivers were forced to urinate in bottles as a result of inadequate breaks, per the same report.
Not the First Time Cameras Have Caught a Driver
The Greenwich Village incident isn't an isolated case caught on camera. In Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, a female Amazon delivery driver was recorded in May 2025 defecating on one home's porch and urinating on another home's walkway, footage submitted to KTLA and reported by KXAN showed. Amazon confirmed at the time that the driver would no longer deliver packages on its behalf.
More recently, a female Amazon driver was caught on a Pomona, California, homeowner's surveillance camera urinating between two parked cars on April 30, according to Yahoo News. Amazon said at the time it was aware of the matter, took it seriously and had launched an investigation, and identified the driver as an Amazon Flex delivery partner — an arrangement involving independent contractors who use their own vehicles to make deliveries, the outlet reported.
Back in Greenwich Village, Donny says he's still on edge every time a delivery buzzes his door, and the driver responsible for the mess in his lobby remains unidentified.
