TAPA urges increased data sharing to reduce cargo theft

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The Transported Asset Protection Association (TAPA) is urging aw enforcement agencies and insurers to share data on cargo crime to help the industry reduce the risk of theft.

The association says reported crimes have hit a three year high in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), with an average of almost five incidents a day. It says 444 incidents were reported in the first quarter of 2016, a 115 per cent increase, including 29 major losses valued at over 100,000 euros ($113,031). The highest single loss was eight pallets of perfume worth 600,000 euros from a trailer in Lastrup, Lower Saxony in Germany.

TAPA EMEA chairman, Thorsten Neumann says: “We need much more crime intelligence from across the EMEA region if industry is to help the police tackle this issue. Similarly, we are asking more insurers to help us gain a better understanding of the true level of cargo crime, which remains massively under-reported.”

TAPA says 86.2 per cent of cargo thefts occurred in four countries, with 131 incidents in the UK, 126 in the Netherlands, 86 in Germany and 40 in Sweden. Food and drink recorded the highest number of incidents, followed by clothing and footwear, computers, furniture and household appliances, cosmetics and hygiene, and tools and building materials.