Freight crime and the Freight Crime Bill

The level of freight crime is an ever-growing concern within the UK. In 2023, there were 5,370 reported incidents, resulting in losses in the region of £68.3 million. This translates to a figure of circa £700 million, when considering the retail values of the stolen goods. 

Although the true extent of the problem is almost impossible to quantify, recent figures from the National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS) suggest that the estimated value of goods stolen has increased by 63% in 2023, to more than £110m in 2024. Some reports estimate that this could rise to £6.1bn by 2049.

For far too long, freight crime has been seen and treated as a crime carried out by opportunist criminals. This is most definitely not the case. Freight crime has become a serious and organised business, often involving extreme threats of violence. Freight crime is already at an unacceptable level, threatening productivity, driver safety, and ultimately resulting in increased costs for consumers. 

Freight Crime Bill

A new Bill, the Freight Crime Bill, has recently been tabled in Parliament, by the Labour MP for North Warwickshire and Bedworth, Rachel Taylor. The Bill is a Ten-Minute Rule Bill, a type of Bill used by backbench MPs to bring attention to issues of importance to them. The Bill calls for action to tackle organised freight crime and forms part of the MP’s campaign to tackle an ongoing epidemic of theft impacting the logistics and freight industry.

Ms Taylor also chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Freight and Logistics. The APPG recently published a report “Securing Our Supply Chains”, making recommendations on how the Government can crack down on freight crims and secure supply chains RHA APPG Freight Crime Report 241112.pdf. 

The report highlights motorway service area hotspots, and the number of reported offences between 2020 – 2023 in different parts of the country. Ms Taylor is calling on the Government to implement the following measures:

• Endorse and support secure parking standards, with a view to establishing a recognised UK parking standard;

• Ensure planned reform to the National Planning Policy Framework that considers the needs of hauliers, reasserting the need for a strong nationwide network for the safety and security of drivers; and 

• Launch a national parking space programme, working with local authorities across the UK to improve both parking and standards for hauliers.

The Bill is also calling on the Government to introduce a specific crime code for freight crime, which is something that both the police, and freight industry, say would make a huge difference in helping them to tackle the issue.

The current lack of a specific crime code means that freight crime is often categorised in the same way as a smaller theft from a personal vehicle. This subsequently affects the way in which police can track down freight criminals. Consequently, the organised criminal gangs see targeting freight as low risk, high reward. 

A new specific code would also allow meaningful data to be collected. Currently, most of the freight crime is collated by NaVCIS, an organisation that receives no Government funding. Police forces are not currently required to report freight crime incidents, which results in a lack of any meaningful data for some areas of the country. With a separate crime code, freight crime hotspots could be targeted, and a national strategy could be created, allowing police forces to track and arrest perpetrators across county lines.  

Industry reaction

The Road Haulage Association’s (RHA’s) Managing Director, Richard Smith, agrees with Rachel Taylor that freight crime must be addressed. He has stated that:

“Criminals are increasingly focusing on vulnerable vehicles parked independently in laybys and industrial estates. We’re on the back foot because these figures still only represent estimates as we rely on voluntary reports by police forces…

We’ll only know the true scale of the issue when we get the specific Freight Crime reporting code that the RHA has long been campaigning for.”

The RHA has suggested that the country is currently short by some 11,000 lorry parking spaces, with 75% of freight crime occurring in independent, or unsecured motorway service areas. The RHA has also led a campaign calling for a national, co-ordinated approach to tackling freight crime, stating: “These figures highlight the fact that freight crime is becoming more serious, more organised, and more intelligence led. Criminals have always known what goods are moving, when they’re moving and where they’re most at risk – and now it’s even higher reward for them”.

Timeline

The Bill was read in Parliament on 18 March 2025, with a second reading due on 20 June 2025. Hopefully the Bill will gain some traction and become a key next step in tackling UK freight crime.

This article was co-authored by Jayne Ward.