Kathmandu. The global logistics insurance sector is facing a new kind of risk as organized criminal gangs intensify the incidence of strategic cargo theft.
Instead of simple vandalism or extortion, criminals are now using fraud, identity fraud and digital technologies to transport high-value goods. This is driving up insurance claims and making risk assessment more difficult. As a result, insurance companies have been forced to tighten their underwriting policies.
According to experts, in this new type of cargo theft, the perpetrators are targeting administrative and digital vulnerabilities in the supply chain, rather than direct attacks. In many cases, they steal the identity of the real carrier or insurance broker and pose as an official party. They then take on the responsibility of transporting goods through dual brokerage techniques or receive cargo directly as freighters.
This type of transaction is similar to a typical business transfer. Therefore, in many cases, the theft is detected only when the goods are lost.
According to data from the global insurance industry, the scale of the problem is increasing rapidly. Risk analysis firm Verisk Cargonet expects total losses from cargo theft to be around $725 million in 2025. That’s up nearly 60 percent from 2024.
While the number of theft cases in North America has remained steady, the per-incident financial loss has increased significantly. In 2025, the average loss per incident was about $274,000. This is an increase of 36 percent compared to the previous year.
Analysts say criminals are now focusing more on high-value products, including electronics, storage drives, computing components and other premium technology products.
A similar trend has been observed in supply chain security analyses. According to various reports, strategic cargo theft through fraud, cybertactics and identity fraud has increased by more than 1,500 percent since 2021. Currently, the share of such crimes in the total cargo theft cases is increasing rapidly.
This situation is having a significant impact on the underwriting of logistics insurance. Insurance companies are now facing rising claims and more complex fraud schemes.
In response, many insurers are taking steps such as increasing deductibles for high-risk products, raising premiums, imposing sub-limits on coverage, and requiring stricter loss reduction measures for insurers.
As a result, it is becoming more difficult than ever to obtain insurance coverage for some risky products. To address these risks, logistics companies are now focusing on strengthening carrier and broker authentication processes, using advanced tracking technology, and strengthening industry-based information sharing initiatives.
According to experts, this trend could continue till 2026. Organized crime gangs will try to exploit digital vulnerabilities in global supply chains to continue stealing cargo.
In this context, collaboration between insurance companies, insurance brokers, and logistics service providers, information sharing and the establishment of robust risk management frameworks are becoming increasingly important. This is strengthening efforts to mitigate the financial and operational impact of rising cargo theft. –Agency
