Crime in the TSL industry, how to avoid becoming a victim
Organised crime in logistics is not isolated incidents. Cargo theft, ghost companies, extortion at unloading. How to protect yourself.
Behind the scenes of the freight industry, organised criminal networks operate across multiple countries simultaneously, fake documents, accounts in tax havens, networks of shell companies. Europol and Eurojust have long flagged logistics as a primary vehicle for money laundering.
The classic scheme
A fictitious company registered to a frontman. A website cloned from a legitimate carrier. Everything looks right: tax ID, VAT number, address. The vehicle is hired, stolen, or modified. The driver has convincing documentation. Loading goes smoothly. After departure, contact drops. The company vanishes. A carrier from Lower Silesia lost a load of electronics worth 220,000 euros this way.
Double brokering and extortion
A growing risk is double brokering: freight entrusted to a carrier ends up with an unverified subcontractor. Increasingly common is extortion: "pay extra or we will not unload." Carriers deliberately hold cargo on trailers, exposing clients to contractual penalties and lost contracts.
The famous "trust in the industry" has become the system's Achilles heel. We trust the exchange platform too much, and the people on the other side of the screen too little.
Freight crime cannot remain a taboo subject. Document everything, report incidents, and treat verification as a cost of doing business, not a luxury.