Cargo theft in Mexico has worsened and become a constant on the country’s roads, due to factors such as the increase in demand from various industries, the uncertainty generated by the internal and US elections, as well as disputes between criminal groups, which points to closing this 2024 with worse figures than those recorded last year.
Héctor Polti, director of digital transformation at AI27, told EL FINANCIERO that in the first half of this year alone, thefts from trucks and cargo transport, with and without a report, amounted to 8,490 criminal incidents, which represented an annual increase of 5.4 percent compared to the same period last year.
The director explained that for every 100 thefts reported to official security sources, there are 87 additional thefts that go unnoticed, without any type of protection, even without a report. In perspective, he added that the number of robberies could double in the current semester and exceed the records of last year, when 14,600 thefts were committed to motor transport.
“We estimate the total number of robberies for 2023 between 12,000 and 14,000 in Mexico. In the first semester we believe there will be 8,000 robberies, my impression is that we are talking about a larger magnitude this year. We have also had many more cases of increased violence. I think it will end up surpassing it, that it will be more than double, I think the second semester will be greater,” he explained.
He explained that the blow to the industry has been very strong, from putting the lives of truck operators and their families at risk and generating losses for various sectors, since stolen loads can range in value from 500 thousand pesos to 2 million pesos, on average.
“Wires and steel have hovered between 4 and 10 percent of the thefts we monitor in the first half of the year, and wines and liquors have accounted for over 10 percent. In August, they were at 13 percent. They have consistently remained in the top 3 as one of the hardest hit industries,” he said.
According to the security and technology firm AI27, the most stolen vehicles last year were trailer-type units with 70 percent of the thefts, followed by double-trailer or full-size trucks with 12 percent, cargo vans of up to 5 tons with 9 percent, and Thorton and Rabón trucks with 7 and 1 percent, respectively.
Likewise, the states with the highest incidences are the State of Mexico, with 21 percent; Puebla, 18 percent, and Veracruz with 9 percent, as of June of this year, affecting main roads such as the San Martín Texmelucan-Amozoc-la Esperanza highway, the Matehuala-San Roberto, Tepotzotlán-Palmillas highway, and the Querétaro-Celaya and Arco Norte highways.
“Highway 57, which passes through the State of Mexico, Hidalgo, Querétaro, San Luis and has two forks, I think we should pay close attention to it, it is an important communication route,” said David Román, president of the National Association of Vehicle Tracking and Protection Companies (Anerpv).
He stressed that it is the highway with the most traffic, so having alternative means such as the railroad to move cargo as the new government plans to the north, ‘is good news’ to lighten the load and incidents, in addition to attending to other highway sections and new communication routes also towards the southeast.
Despite the increase in robberies in entities such as Puebla and Hidalgo or Veracruz -strategic sites for the connection with the Bajío and the border-, experts point out that the vehicle recovery rate has increased between 75 and 80 percent, so they trust that with a new national security strategy and collaboration with the National Guard, the problem will tend to decrease.
“Last year we closed with 2 billion pesos in asset and merchandise recovery. We made a cut and we have close to a billion pesos, so it is highly probable that we will close with a similar figure of 2 billion pesos recovered,” said the president of Anerpv.
Insurance prices rise
The effects of theft from transport and insecurity are taking their toll on fleet leasing companies, owners of units, trucks and tractor-trailers, as it has made premiums or insurance for units up to 30 percent. Fernando Noriega, general director of the leasing company Idealease, said that on average the auto transport industry in Mexico spends up to the equivalent of 1.5 percent of GDP on security for its units.
“In the first half of the year, theft increased nationwide, and after the elections it decreased a little. Theft has affected us, even though we are not transporters, but it affects logistics costs and competitiveness,” he explained.
Source: elfinanciero
