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Quarterly cargo, truck theft swells across US and Canada: CargoNet

CARGONET recorded 358 supply chain risk incidents in the first quarter across the United States and Canada, including 58 per cent that involved the theft of a trucking vehicle, 54 per cent involving cargo theft, and seven per cent were classified as fraud, usually, identity theft and wire fraud.

In total, 192 incidents were recorded, and in each case the stolen goods were worth on average US$149,522, bringing the total estimated loss to $28.7 million for the quarter, reported American Journal of Transportation.

There were 339 trucking vehicles reported stolen, including 137 tractors and 143 trailers. However, theft of intermodal equipment such as chassis and containers dropped by half compared the same period a year earlier.

Secured yards were the most common location where cargo thefts occurred, with 40 cargo thefts recorded at secured yards, defined as a fully fenced trucking yard where the fence is designed for access control. Warehouse locations were next, with 32 thefts, followed closely by parking lots (such as those of major retailers), with 28 thefts.

Food and beverage products were the most commonly stolen items, and 31 per cent of all reported cargo thefts involved those commodities. Specifically, meat products were the most stolen food and beverage item, with 17 thefts.

California remained the state with the most cargo thefts, after reporting 51 cargo theft cases. Normally, Texas follows California but in this quarter, it was displaced by Ontario, Canada's most populous province, which reported 29 cargo thefts, a year-on-year increase of 262 per cent.