Preventing cargo theft in international shipping. What a cargo owner needs to know and do to protect his cargo from fraudsters.
International cargo transportation is a complicated process involving dozens of different actors: shipping managers and dispatchers of transport companies, drivers, shippers, etc. Each of them, having information about preparing to transport valuable cargo, knowing in detail the route of delivery and “internal kitchen” of the transport process, can become a part of a criminal scheme, the ultimate goal of which is cargo theft.
We shouldn’t forget about active, professional crews of crooks who use the most sophisticated techniques to steal cargo at any stage of the transportation process — at loading, exiting the warehouse, or while en route. It is naive to think that by finding a carrier online or through an advertisement and placing a freight order with him, the cargo owner can wait quietly for the cargo to arrive at its destination.
.To prevent this from happening and to best protect your cargo from cybercriminals, we strongly encourage cargo owners to take the following precautions
1) How to find a carrier or transport company online or through other resources. How do you know that you are being offered the services of a reliable carrier or forwarding company and not a front company looking to load your shipment for you and then get away with it?
.Trust your employees to do a thorough background check on the haulier offering their services. Carry out a thorough monitoring in Google, Yandex search engines, professional carriers’ websites, especially in the blacklists where the swindlers who have already “cheated” the other clients get. Call the association of carriers , which is in each country, for example, AITA, ASMAP, BAMAP, the country to which the transportation company belongs. Experience of transport or forwarding company which positions itself as a qualitative performer cannot be less than 5-7 years. Otherwise the experience can be insufficient for quality and safe carriage.
.Please note if the transportation company has an active corporate website. Assess its quality and completeness of the information about the company: details, phone numbers, names of management, reviews of previous customers. Remember, creating a one-page “fake site” and hosting it for free is not a problem for intruders and they may have several such sites at once!
.2) During the shipping arrangements.
Request a copy of the original registration details of the transport company with the fiscal code. Request copies of the TIR Carnet, CMR waybills, CMR insurance valid for one year, vehicle data sheets, valid international trucking license.
Request a translation of all official documentation if the company is registered in another country. Ask for reference letters from other clients, make sure they are not fake. Make sure the carrier or freight forwarder liability insurance is mandatory and provide an insurance policy.
.It is recommended that conversations be conducted over a landline phone. Don’t forget that a cell phone can always be turned off and thrown away.
Only after having taken these precautions can you enter into a shipment contract, making sure to hand it over to a lawyer for assessment, and once again checking the details and other information you provide to the freight forwarding company from which you intend to order carriage.
3) At the stage of lading, prior to lading the truck, the consignor, or his representative, must personally provide the consignor with the details of the truck to be laden: number plates, copies of the vehicle’s specifications and any other relevant information.