Get Serious About Freight Theft

(Lloyd’s List — Comment)

That somewhere around $5bn worth of cargo is stolen every year from the global supply chain is surprising in itself. It is perhaps even more surprising that this is not headline news; but beyond the dramatic stories of pirate attacks off the Horn of Africa, which are potent fuel to fire the imagination with, much freight theft is low-level and accumulative.

For the general public, freight theft is essentially a victim-less crime and consequently does not register – although the viciousness of some of the attacks on lorry drivers taking their mandatory breaks on roadside rest stops are the equal of many a Somali pirate. However, while piracy at sea is principally an issue for shipowners, ship operators, and naval security services, the tightening of supply chain security places far more responsibility onto cargo owners, who appear to approach the serious problems posed by freight crime with something of a cavalier attitude.

Certainly, given the multiple concerns of, say, a high street retailer or global automotive manufacturer struggling to get his company through the recession, it is understandable that supply chain security might find itself slipping down the pecking order. That does not, however, mean that it is acceptable. Read more here.