Truckload carriers across the U.S. saw a sharp rise in cargo thefts during the second quarter — with thieves targeting everything from electronic goods to food and beverage products and construction materials, FreightWaves.com reports.

Verisk Analytics’ firm CargoNet, which tracks voluntarily reported cargo thefts, said there were 566 incidents in the U.S. and 16 in Canada in the second quarter of 2023, a 57% year-over-year increase.  

“In total, thieves stole over $44 million in goods in the second quarter of 2023 and the average shipment value per event increased nearly $100,000 to $260,703 per theft as cargo thieves focused on high-value shipments,” CargoNet said in a news release.

Cargo thefts were most common in California, Texas, Florida, and Illinois, CargoNet adds.

In comparison, visibility and risk management platform Overhaul’s data showed 123 cargo thefts were reported during the quarter, a year-on-year increase of 15%. 

There were more cargo theft incidents near freight hubs and large cities, leading to hot spots in states such as California and Georgia, which ranked in first and second place in terms of cargo theft risk, according to Overhaul.

The average loss value per incident reported to Overhaul during the second quarter was $428,409, 55% higher compared to the first quarter of 2023. 

While Overhaul and CargoNet officials each gather and report cargo theft data, they get information from various sources and focus on different parts of the supply chain. They also have a different number of clients/users who self-report incidents.

“While Overhaul does not get their data from us and has no affiliation to Verisk/CargoNet, there are instances where if we have mutual clients that a theft could be represented in both numbers,” Keith Lewis, CargoNet’s vice president of operations, told FreightWaves. “I can’t be certain about it but if I had to give a reason for the large discrepancy, it is most likely just because of the areas that each company focuses on.”

Warehouses/distribution centers, unsecured lots top targets

The majority of cargo thefts in the second quarter of 2023 occurred near warehouses and distribution centers, along with unsecured parking lots and company truck yards and premises, both sources indicate.

Danny Ramon, an intelligence and response manager at Overhaul, says when trucks park in places that are publicly accessible, those places are designated as unsecured parking lots. 

“There’s no standard industry definition of what an unsecured lot is. A truck could be parked at a Target or Walmart parking lot, a truck stop, a rest area on a highway, restaurants — those types of places are what we consider unsecured parking,” Ramon said.

Cargo thieves are also focusing on stealing full truckloads, as well as pilferage, which involves stealing smaller amounts of cargo and individual items from trucks.

 CargoNet data shows theft of full truckloads increased by 17% over 2022, most often in California, Texas, Florida, and Illinois. 

“We also note that regional activity around New York City and Philadelphia was significant,” CargoNet says. “Burglary of a loaded conveyance … still remains a significant threat to shipments, especially high-value shipments that are traveling on the Interstate 40 corridor through Arizona, California, and New Mexico.”

Fictitious pickups by cargo thieves also showed a significant increase in the second quarter.

“We recorded 127 more fictitious pickups year on year in the quarter,” CargoNet says. 

“Fictitious pickups were most common in the Los Angeles area, but occurred all over the U.S. Some counties recorded a significant problem due to their local industry, like Maricopa County, Arizona; Travis and Chambers counties in Texas; and DeKalb County, Georgia.”

Ramon says California and Texas usually see higher amounts of cargo theft than compared to other states due to the large volume of goods moving through those regions at all times. 

Georgia, Kentucky, and Indiana also saw increases in cargo theft during the quarter, with home and garden products and food and beverage goods as the most targeted loads. 

“Georgia is perennially in the top 10 and California is always No. 1, it’s always gonna be No. 1,” Ramon says. “We recently saw that the Kentucky State Police were able to cooperate with a couple of federal agencies, they got a couple of arrests for major cargo criminals in the area. What they’ve been seeing a lot of is fraudulent thefts and strategic targeted thefts.”