Recent audacious heists in Canada and Germany are underlining the importance of cargo insurance coverage and heightened security protocols in the face of rising warehouse thefts globally.
The Heist of the Year
Lights, Camera, Action! Remember the glamour of the movie The Italian Job? High-speed chases, sophisticated hacking, and meticulously planned heists kept us on the edge of our seats. But in the real world, you don’t need any of that to pull off a multi-million-dollar heist! This spring, criminals walked out of an Air Canada storage facility in Toronto with 15 million EUR in gold simply by using a fake air waybill for an unrelated shipment!
Zoom out: The heist highlights the importance of security guidelines in any logistics company. It is similar to a freight forwarder hiring a subcontractor based solely on an email from a public email address and entrusting them with customers’ goods without any questions.
The initial report indicated that thieves were able to gain access to the holding cargo facility through the public side of a warehouse that was leased to a third party. However, it has since been discovered that they used a fake air waybill for an unrelated shipment and made off with the high-value loot.
A logistics company, Brink, sued Air Canada for their alleged negligence. Despite paying a premium for Air Canada’s “AC Secure” service—which promised top-tier security for high-value commodities—the reality was quite different. The lawsuit revealed that Air Canada’s facilities lacked essential elements like CCTV cameras, secure vaults, and active surveillance protocols.
When One Truck is not Enough for Thieves
A truck parked at an unsecured location can be an easy target for thieves. But what if one truck is not enough for them? What if they aim for more like 2,000 TVs, 16,000 electronic toothbrushes, and a 100kg safe? This audacious warehouse heist was carried out in Duisburg, Germany on 9th November 2023.
Take a step back: The coverage provided by cargo insurance starts when the goods are moved into a warehouse and ends upon unloading. The storage facility may only be covered by cargo insurance if it is a transshipment warehouse.
There is limited information available about the heist. It is known that the theft occurred over the weekend and involved the burglars breaking in through a window. They used multiple trucks to transport the stolen goods, estimated to be worth 1.4 million EUR. Unfortunately for the thieves, their success was short-lived as the police stopped a lorry carrying toothbrushes during a routine check en route to the Netherlands a week later.
According to TAPA, almost 30% of all reported incidents in November were warehouse thefts. The situation is no better in the United States, where warehouse thefts increased significantly in 2023.
Gediminas Dauksa
Group Practice Leader Transportation & Logistics
T +370 616 08451
Insured by Algorithms
The insurance industry is undergoing a profound transformation, driven by the rapid adoption of AI and predictive analytics.
Beyond Moving Cargo: Why Employee Well-Being Is the Real Asset in Logistics
In today’s employee-driven market, especially for Gen Z talent, benefits aren’t just perks – they’re strategic tools for attraction and retention
The New Edition of FORWARD Magazine Is Now Available
GrECo is proud to present the latest edition of our client publication, FORWARD Magazine—now live and ready to explore.
