Amazon can now deliver packages directly to your car – in 37 cities in the U.S. for now

Last year, Amazon asked for permission to unlock your front door so it could leave packages inside your home, and a certain number of extremely trusting Amazon Prime subscribers (Amazon won’t say how many) said okay. Now, the tech giant wants to do the same thing with your car.

Amazon announced today a new service that gives its couriers access to a person’s vehicle for the purpose of leaving package deliveries inside. But rather than use smart locks and a cloud-connected camera to gain entry, Amazon wants to use the connected technologies embedded in many modern vehicles today. The company is launching this new service in partnership with two major automakers — General Motors and Volvo — and will be rolling out in 37 cities in the US starting today.
“We were really happy with the response to in-home delivery,” Peter Larsen, vice president of delivery technology at Amazon, told The Verge. “What we wanted to do — and it was part of the plan all along — is how we take that beyond the home.”

Amazon has been beta testing the new service in California and Washington state for the past six months.

Amazon press release:
Millions of Prime members with Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Cadillac and Volvo cars can now use Amazon Key to have their Amazon packages delivered inside their vehicle parked at home, work or near other locations in their address book In-car delivery is available at no extra cost for Prime members – customers simply download the Amazon Key App, link to their connected car and start ordering on Amazon.com; no additional hardware or devices required.

SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Apr. 24, 2018– (NASDAQ:AMZN) – Amazon today announced that Amazon Key, the service that already enables in-home delivery and keyless guest access, now gives customers an option to receive deliveries inside their vehicle. With Amazon Key In-Car, Prime members with compatible vehicles now have the convenience of having packages delivered inside their cars when parked in a publicly accessible area, typically at their home or workplace.

In-car delivery is available at no extra cost for Prime members and is available today in 37 cities and surrounding areas across the U.S. with more cities rolling out over time. Delivery is available on tens of millions of items sold on Amazon.com and works with Same Day, Two-Day and Standard Shipping.

To get started, customers download the Amazon Key App and then link their Amazon account with their connected car service account. Once setup is complete and the delivery location has been registered, customers can shop on Amazon.com and select the “In-Car” delivery option at checkout.

On delivery day, the Amazon Key App lets customers check if they’ve parked within range of the delivery location, and provides notifications with the expected 4-hour delivery time window. The App also notifies customers when the delivery is on its way, and the package has been delivered. Customers can track when their car was unlocked and relocked in the App’s activity feed, and rate their in-car delivery.

“Since launching Amazon Key last November, we’ve safely delivered everything from cameras to collectable coins inside the home. Customers have also told us they love features like keyless guest access and being able to monitor their front door from anywhere with the Amazon Key App,” said Peter Larsen, Vice President of Delivery Technology, Amazon. “In-car delivery gives customers that same peace of mind and allows them to take the Amazon experience with them. And, with no additional hardware or devices required, customers can start ordering in-car delivery today.”

In-car delivery is available to customers with a compatible 2015 or newer Chevrolet, Buick, GMC or Cadillac vehicle with an active OnStar account, and customers with a 2015 or newer Volvo vehicle with an active Volvo On Call account. Support for even more vehicle makes and models will be added over time.

“Unlocking Amazon Key In-Car delivery for more than 7 million Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac owners is another great example of how we are leveraging the embedded connectivity in our vehicles to provide our customers with services that make their ownership experience more valuable,” said Alan Batey, president, General Motors North America.

Amazon uses multiple layers of verification to ensure the security of in-car deliveries. Each time a delivery driver requests access to a customer’s vehicle, Amazon verifies that an authorized driver is at the right location with the right package, through an encrypted authentication process. Once this process is successfully completed, the car is then unlocked. Customers receive a notification via the Amazon Key App after the delivery is completed and the vehicle is relocked. No special codes or keys are ever provided to delivery drivers. For added peace of mind, in-car delivery is backed by Amazon’s Happiness Guarantee.

“Simplification of experience for our consumers is central to Volvo’s digital vision. Receiving a package securely and reliably in your car, without you having to be there, is something we think many people will appreciate. Our partnership with Amazon now makes this possible for a majority of our customers in the US,” said Atif Rafiq, Chief Digital Officer at Volvo Cars. “This intersection between transportation and commerce could very well be the next wave of innovation, and we intend to be at the forefront.”

In addition to enabling in-car delivery, Amazon Key is a smart entry solution that offers customers keyless entry, remote lock and unlock, and guest access, as well as the option to have packages delivered inside the home.