Trucking news and briefs for Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023:
CargoNet has recorded 126 cargo theft incidents during the Thanksgiving holiday period (the Tuesday before Thanksgiving through the Monday after) in the last five years totaling $6.7 million.CargoNet
Cargo theft recording firm CargoNet is warning those in the freight transportation industry “that the threat of cargo theft activity is extremely high this upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.”
Cargo theft activity has been steadily increasing since November 2022, with the average number of reports filed per week increasing to 51 per week, up 64% when compared to historical data between January 2012 and October 2022. Between Oct. 1 and Nov. 11 of this year, that number was even higher – 66 reports per week – a 113% increase from the previous decade.
The biggest active threat is that of strategic cargo theft, in which thieves seek to obtain a load by either impersonating a legitimate carrier, using an authority they have registered or otherwise have access to, or deceiving a motor carrier into giving them credentials to vital accounts.
There is also an ever-present threat of full truckload theft, CargoNet said, which is particularly high during the Thanksgiving holiday period due to the likelihood that trucks and freight is left unattended for extended periods of time.
“CargoNet believes that the risk during this upcoming holiday is unlike any recent year,” the firm said. “Strategic cargo theft groups over the past year have shown that they ramp up activity around major holidays because they understand logistics brokers will be under pressure and more likely to make mistakes. CargoNet is concerned recent spikes in theft of unattended, loaded conveyances, particularly in Dallas-Fort Worth, Atlanta, and Southern California will continue into the holiday.”
