12/21/2009 - Truck holdups far more frequent than attacks by sea pirates

In the months of October and November, 460 attacks on trucks were registered on European roads. In comparison, the figure for attacks by sea pirates in the first nine months of this year amounted to 306 worldwide. These are the figures issued by the TAPA (Transported Asset Protection Association) and the IMB (International Marine Board). While security in the Gulf of Aden and off the coast of Somalia has been improved by the EU naval operation against piracy "Atalanta" through all the naval vessels operating in those regions, truck drivers continue to depend for their safety on manufacturers not cutting costs when it comes to transport security. The fact is that road transportation to highest security standards like satellite-based transport monitoring, two drivers, special locking systems in and on the doors and the exclusive use of monitored, secured parking areas is 20 to 30 percent more expensive. Yet for Heiner Haller, Senior Manager Operations at Time Shuttle, a logistics company specializing in the transportation of theft-prone products, the safety of the drivers has top priority: "Besides responsibility for the well-being of the drivers, many manufacturers underestimate the risk of holdups that threaten their valuable cargoes as well as the consequential damage like loss of market share and rising insurance premiums. Especially in the run-up to Christmas and in the time between Christmas and New Year, lots of high-value consumer electronics goods are on the road, and the organized gangs of cargo thieves are well aware of this."
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