FWI: Freight theft on the rise throughout Europe

The 443 total cargo thefts reported in the region during the quarter were almost double the number recorded in the same period in 2014, according to the FreightWatch International Q3 2015 Intelligence Update Report for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.    The FreightWatch International Supply Chain Intelligence Center (FWI SCIC) recorded a total of 443 cargo thefts in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) during the third quarter of 2015, an 89 percent increase from the same period last year.
   It should be noted, however, reported cargo theft incidents were still down 11.6 percent from 501 total incidents in the second quarter of 2015.
   According to the FWI SCIC Q3 2015 EMEA Intelligence Update Report, the 10 countries with the highest number of recorded incidents from July to September were Germany (98), United Kingdom (79), Belgium (54), The Netherlands (53), France (41), Italy (24), Austria (20), South Africa (20), Russia (14) and Spain (13).
   The global logistics security provider noted that some the 54 incidents in Belgium actually took place in the second quarter, but were included in the findings because they were not reported until the third quarter.
   The most common form of cargo theft during Q3 2015 continued to be “Pilferage,” theft from a truck/trailer, with 236 incidents, or 57 of all recorded thefts.
   FreightWatch reported a 59 percent increase truck hijackings as well, rising from 29 recorded incidents in Q3 2014 to 46 in Q3 2015, with the majority of incidents reported in France, South Africa, Italy, the UK and Russia.
   Food and drinks replaced electronics as the most stolen product type during the third quarter of 2015, accounting for 50 of the 443 total thefts in the EMEA region. A wide variety of products were targeted in this category, including energy drinks, fresh fish and sweets.
   Electronics were the second most targeted commodity for cargo thefts in Q3 2015 with 46 recorded incidents, followed by miscellaneous with 42, clothing & shoes with 36, automobiles and parts with 34, building and industrial products with 34, and tobacco with 30.