Auctions for “abandoned” parcels: how it works and what you can buy

“Ukrposhta” is expanding the sale of unclaimed parcels to six regions of Ukraine. Now their residents will be able to purchase unique goods as part of special auctions. UNN looked into how they are conducted and what can be purchased.

Details

Today, the sale of “abandoned” items is not unusual. Large global companies such as Amazon, USPS, FedEx and Royal Mail have long practiced such measures. “Ukrposhta” began using this experience in May 2024.

The first auctions were held in Kyiv in May 2024. After the expansion of the project, residents of Lviv, Ternopil, Dnipro, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhzhia and Khmelnytskyi can purchase unique lots. To do this, they need to use the “Prozorro.Sales” platform. 

The point is that if the parcel is not picked up within six months, it goes to auction. What can you buy in this case?

“Since the launch, we have seen people find everything from tablets to bicycle frames in the lots. It’s a drive, excitement and at the same time an opportunity for business,” says Igor Smilyansky, CEO of Ukrposhta.

Rada supported the creation of a “postal bank” based on Ukrposhta: details of the bill25.03.25, 13:37 • 136772 views

 “Ukrposhta” stores tens of thousands of “forgotten” parcels that have not been picked up by either the recipients or the senders. Ukrainian law gives the company the right to put them up for auction. In this way, it has the opportunity to compensate for the costs of logistics and storage of the parcel.

How auctions are held

During the auction, parcels are combined into lots of 100 units, which are sold as one unit. At the same time, lots are formed randomly, address information is deleted. Lots are formed randomly, consisting only of whole, undamaged parcels.

The main highlight is that neither the buyer nor Ukrposhta knows exactly what is contained in the lots until the moment of purchase. To ensure fairness, company employees do not participate in the auctions.

In total, Ukrposhta has already held 163 auctions, where the average cost of a lot ranges from 14 to 25 thousand hryvnias.

Let us remind you

Online auctions with a record number of participants were held on May 14 last year in the “Prozorro.Sales” system. Then 115 participants took part in the auction for the sale of unclaimed parcels.

The subject of the auction was also a lot of 100 boxes of parcels. The lot started with a price of 1,200 hryvnias, and by the end, as a result of a fierce struggle between the participants, its value reached 160,000 hryvnias.