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Policy & Compliance


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Is preventing and detecting crime moving up the agenda?


With cargo thefts totalling an estimated €305,000 a day, the European Commission is proposing to invest €60 million to increase the number of secure parking places


BIFA has been involved in numerous initiatives aimed at tackling cargo-related crime, for instance Operation Grafton. However, these have often focused on a specific location or issue, such as cargo theft at Heathrow and its immediate environs. Over the past few years, BIFA has noted a


change in approach relative to crime. Previously, freight-related crime and theft from vehicles has been regarded as victimless. Now this view is changing, particularly as it is recognised that the gangs are highly organised, increasingly willing to threaten or use violence, and the profits are used to fund more serious crime. In the UK, the National Vehicle Crime


Intelligence Service (NAVCIS), which BIFA has recently entered into a partnership arrangement with, has been collating and co-ordinating vehicle-related crime information and police investigations. BIFA publishes on its website NAVCIS crime reports, which Members can use to identify crime hotspots.


Secure parking Regardless of location, one issue that causes constant concern relates to secure parking, both in terms of the lack of sites and a common standard for such sites. The Transported Asset Protection Association


(TAPA) wants to work with the EU to create such a standard. NAVCIS has issued its Parking Security Requirements (PSR), a tiered certification programme for parking operators


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that allows Members to select sites and also provide information about criminal activity on the route. The EU is developing a similar strategy, listing secure parking places within a certification framework. These initiatives are against the backdrop of


record reported cargo thefts in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, amounting to more than €55 million or some €305,000 a day, in 4,198 recorded incidents, which is 5.1% higher than the previous year. It is generally thought that these reported figures represent a relatively small amount of the true total. The top ten countries for recorded losses


were France, Germany, the Netherlands, UK, Spain, Russia, South Africa, Belgium, Romania and Italy. Incidents in these countries accounted for 91.8% of all incidents. By commodity, the highest losses were in


tobacco products, food and drink, furniture and household appliances, clothing, footwear, cosmetics and hygiene goods. Theft from vehicles represented 57.4% of the total, with 615 from trucks in unclassified parking locations.


What is most welcome is the European


Commission’s proposal to invest €60 million to increase the number of secure parking places. The ambition is to develop a network of safe and secure parking every 100 km along the TEN-T core road network, as well as upgrading safety, security and services at existing ones.


Parking space shortfall Currently it is estimated that there are 300,000 available parking spaces across the entire EU, an estimated shortfall of 100,000 spaces. Of the 300,000 existing spaces, only 7,000 have been independently audited and certified to be “safe and secure”. The EC has defined the standards required for


a parking area to be certified as being safe and secure, these will be the basis for the €60 million funding referred to earlier in this article. Also, it is hoped that addressing this issue will improve driver safety and make the profession more attractive to existing employees and potential recruits, thus in part addressing one of the issues contributing to the current driver shortage.


December 2019


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