With the end of November fast approaching, we’re entering that time of year. Yes, it’s cargo theft season.
While in recent years the number of cargo thefts have been going down, the average value of each load stolen has been going up. And there is no time of the year where cargo thefts spike more reliably than over the holidays. And it starts with Thanksgiving weekend.
According to SensiGuard, the number of cargo thefts over Thanksgiving weekend spike by 51% when compared to the rest of the year.
It’s not just that the increased number of trucks on the road during the holiday season gives thieves more opportunities. It’s also that over Thanksgiving weekend, trucks are more likely to be sitting unattended.
Data from CargoNet shows that between 2013 and 2017, cargo thieves stole $9.4 million worth of goods on average each year.
The most common targets for cargo thieves are trucks parked at warehouses, truck stops, and parking lots of major retailers like Walmart that truckers park at frequently. Anywhere with poor lighting, little to no security personnel, and no video surveillance makes a good target for cargo thieves.
Source: overdrive, overdrive, gwccnet, cargonet, pfaprotects
I hate a thief!
Sucks when it’s against the law for truckers to defend themselves
When I drove OTR and had a high value load I would stop at any store USA when close to home, buy a burner, call a few boys.
Parked truck out of the way and we made out like bandits
Yeah right
The suggestion it’s a inside job is often correct. (Not always driver. There are many who know what is being hauled, trucks are tracked… stick a GPS tracker in $$$ cargo. Call receiving point, where it is already in a sealed post office mailer, stamped to return.
A friend hauled spuds. Way overloaded, he told loading place, who didn’t care. (@1985). He was warned of scale being open that shouldn’t… Called life adding place ” toss extra in ditch”. Well my pickup…lets just say it being a 8′ 3/4 ton with side racks…was not too much. He was only 400lb over by time he hit the scale. They let it go. I was like Santa for hours.
People I hardly knew got 25 lbs. (so yes they were to be ruined as winter) but that’s littering… And loading into pickup backed up easier then one guy offloading a ton.plus