Policy & Compliance
Last year there were 5,373 reports of cargo theft from HGVs, resulting in an estimated loss of £68 million. BIFAlink takes a look at how and why HGV crime is evolving Freight-related crime wave continues to surge
P eriodically, BIFA updates Members on freight- related crime, which recent fi gures show is increasing. The reasons for this are varied, at the simplest level there is more cargo being shipped, but higher in fl ation, which sharply increased the price of food, it is argued has increased the theft of foodstuffs. Although, in general terms, the thieves’ preferences re fl ect consumer demand and items that are relatively easy to sell and preferably untraceable. Figures as to the actual crime statistics are difficult to obtain – in the UK, police figures do not differentiate between freight crime and other types of lawbreaking, particularly relative to cargo theft from vehicles. There
are privately funded police initiatives such as The National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NAVCIS), but information is only distributed to its membership. In this article we will briefly look at crime and its changing nature, and how some issues such as poor HGV parking have wider consequences than might be initially obvious. According to NAVCIS’s figures, during 2023 there were 5,373 reports of cargo theft from HGVs, resulting in an estimated loss of £68 million. These figures are indicative of the scale of the losses but are incomplete and fail to take into account the impact on a trader’s profitability.
12 | August 2024
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