Counting the cost of crime
Page 10
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by Patrick Hook • Truck thefts, load thefts and hijackings are costing hauliers 60% more than originally thought according to a new survey published by the RAC in conjunction with the Road Haulage Association.
At £1.6bn a year, "the cost is higher than even the blackest industry esti mates," says the RHA's executive chief of security, Graham Houghton.
Seven in 10 of the UK's estimated 85,000 truck operators are victims of truck crime while nearly half of all hauliers questioned said they had been victims of crime on an average of five times in the last year. Other findings include: • There are four times as many truck crimes in the UK than previously thought; • 46% of crime occurs in the home depot; • Police estimate that more than 10 trucks are stolen every day; • The average cost of each crime is £10,000; • Less than half of the losses suffered by hauliers are reported, to avoid premitun increases.
Detective Chief Inspector Stephen Lovelock of Scotland Yard's Stolen Vehicle Squad says that with better security of both depots and trucks, up to 50% of these crimes could be avoided each year.
In April, the Home Office survey sponsored by Scotland Yard's International and Organised Crime Branch is expected to show, for the first time, the full extent of reported LGV crime (CM 1-7 December 1994).