CargoNet recorded 358 supply chain risk incidents across the United States and Canada.
Of those 358 incidents, 58 percent involved theft of a trucking vehicle, 54 percent involved theft of cargo, and 7 percent were classified as fraud (often identity theft and wire fraud). In total, 192 cargo theft events were recorded, and the cargo in each theft was worth an average of $149,522, bringing the total estimated loss to $28.7 million for the quarter. There were 339 trucking vehicles reported stolen, including 137 tractors and 143 trailers. Theft of intermodal equipment like chassis and containers dropped just over 50 percent compared to Q1 2016.
Secured yards were the most common location where cargo thefts occurred in Q1 2017. CargoNet recorded 40 cargo thefts at secured yards, defined by CargoNet as a fully fenced trucking yard where the fence is designed for access control. Warehouse locations were next, with 32 thefts, followed closely by parking lots (like those of major retailers), with 28 thefts.
Food and beverage products were the most stolen items in Q1 2017, and 31 percent of all reported cargo thefts involved those commodities. Specifically, meat products were the most stolen food and beverage item, with 17 thefts. Nonalcoholic and alcoholic beverages followed with nine and eight thefts, respectively. Household items were the next most common category; 15 percent of cargo thefts involved this commodity.
California remained the state with the most cargo thefts and reported 51 cargo theft events in Q1 2017. Normally, Texas follows California but in this quarter was displaced by Ontario. Canada’s most populous province reported 29 cargo theft events in Q1 2017, an increase of 262 percent from Q1 2016. Most of the reports were in the Greater Toronto area. In the first three months of 2017, there were ten cargo thefts reported in Brampton, five in Mississauga, and five in Toronto. In many cases, the thefts in these cities were occurring on the same street or even at the same address. Since 2012, there have been an average of nine reported cargo thefts per quarter in the province, but in Q4 2016, reported crime exploded and seems to have continued into Q1 2017.