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Cargo theft is a serious problem in the trucking world. The industry loses millions of dollars every year to thieves, and according to some data, cargo theft is rising in the US. If you’re a trucker or trucking company owner, you need to protect your cargo. Here are the best ways to deter thieves and ensure your company’s continued success.

Vary your routes and drive times

Often, drivers get targeted by thieves over a long period of time. The thieves spend time observing the habits and patterns of the drivers’ behavior, eventually using the information they’ve collected to time their attack. If you drive with less obvious habits, however, the thief will have a harder time predicting your behavior. Therefore, you can protect your cargo by taking slightly different routes and stopping at different stops or at different times along your route. Being unpredictable is a good thing for preventing theft.

Stop only at secure, well-lit stops

Most cargo thefts occur at truck stops, where it becomes harder to protect your truck. Indeed, many truck stops are conducive to theft due to poor maintenance and security measures. Therefore, one of the best ways to protect your cargo is to choose your stops carefully. Make sure you stop somewhere with good lighting (or ideally security guards) and where you can maintain a line of sight to your truck most of the time. By being a little bit more discerning, you can make your truck less of an easy target for thieves. Theft is often a crime of opportunity; if you make that opportunity a bit slimmer, you can take the target off your back.

Insure your cargo

Of course, sometimes you can do everything right and still get robbed. If that happens to you, then you’ll be glad you have cargo insurance! Cargo insurance is an absolute must-have for any independent trucker or trucking company. Cargo insurance helps protect your bottom line by ensuring that even if something does happen to your cargo, you won’t be on the hook for it. In a trucking industry with slim profit margins, this can be the difference between your business thriving and dying. So make sure to get a comprehensive cargo insurance policy from Safeline Insurance!