There were 598 new freight-related cargo losses recorded for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) in the second quarter of this year (Q2 2016) – a 92.9% year-on-year increase over the same period in 2015 – according to statistics released by the Transported Asset Protection Association’s (Tapa) Incident Information Service (IIS) database
Of the new incidents reported to Tapa’s IIS for the three months that ended on June 30, there was a combined loss value for products stolen of €19.3m ($21.4m) – representing a significant increase on the €5.3m ($5.9m) figure for the same period of 2015.
During the second quarter, Tapa recorded cargo losses in 18 countries in the EMEA region, including 21 major thefts involving a loss value of €100 or more.
The report shows that most of these high-value losses occurred in the United Kingdom (UK), which accounted for eight of the total of 21, with 91.4% of all reported crimes in the region in the second quarter occurring in just six countries: the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Russia and Italy.
Overall, 47.5% (or 284) of the recorded crimes in the quarter took place in the UK, mostly in the east of England and the East Midlands.
Tapa is now looking at introducing a new standard to increase the number and quality of secure parking locations, particularly throughout Europe, as data showed that a total of 527 of the 598 new cargo crimes of the second quarter involved trucks.
The data collected also confirmed that most losses took place when trucks were stopped at unsecured parking locations, often when drivers were required to take mandatory rest breaks.
Food and drink products accounted for the highest number of losses (12.7%) in Q2. Other products topping the list include furniture and household appliances; clothing and footwear; cosmetics and hygiene; tools/building materials; tobacco and car parts.
Thorsten Neumann, chairman of Tapa EMEA, said: “These figures should be a great cause of concern for all manufacturers and logistics service providers because they clearly show the escalation of cargo crime.”
He commented that industry often wrongly assumed that Tapa’s crime data related entirely to incidents suffered by members. “In fact, very few of these losses were suffered by our members because of the risk management strategies they have put in place, including adoption of the Tapa security standards,” Neumann said, adding that the greatest risk was to the industry at large and, in particular, companies that had yet to fully recognise the issue of cargo crime.
