Haulage industry figures have welcomed a re-launch of TruckPol, the joint police and haulier partnership dedicated to fighting freight crime, through the National Business Crime Solution (NBCS).
TruckPol shut in March 2012 after the Home Office withdrew funding. The NBCS is launching a freight and logistics crime desk which will be tasked to working with police forces to help UK businesses tackle freight and logistics crime and identify key hot spots and criminal trends by sharing crime data.
Catherine Bowen, Policy and Stakeholder Director at the NBCS, said that TruckPol dependst on a regular and consistent flow of crime data from police and industry. “That’s why we have contacted each chief constable announcing the re- launch of TruckPol and requesting their support through the regular supply of freight crime data. By working with TruckPol, we can continue to build a comprehensive source of criminal data and by encouraging participation by local constabularies we can regularly report on current trends and issues to both the police and its industry partners.”
Mike Marshall, Security Director at Yodel said: “By syndicating data around logistics crime we can better protect ourselves, gain traction from the Police to investigate effectively what is in many cases organised crime groups operating across many forces. Yodel believe in working together both with partners and the authorities to reduce crime in the logistics industry and as such fully support the National Business Crime Solution.”
Chrys Rampley, Road Haulage Association said: “The RHA has been a leading supporter of TruckPol since its inception and, as we stressed to the parliamentary transport committee in 2012, we believe it was an essential focal point and needed to be maintained for the collection and sharing of information on crime against the haulage industry and how it can be best combated. Since the closure of TruckPol in 2012, the industry has received little or no intelligence on freight and haulage crime trends or hotspots. We are excited to get TruckPol back up and running to strengthen the fight against freight and business crime.
“The RHA will be working alongside the NBCS and the police service. As part of that, we are launching our own online, easy-to-use reporting service for members. Information which will go directly to TruckPol and assist with the fighting of crime.”
John Traynor, Director of Security TNT UK, chairs the RHA Security Forum. He said he was delighted that TruckPol has been resurrected as it and its previous output was invaluable to the industry. He said: “Integrating TruckPol into the NBCIB is absolutely the right thing to do as this will further enhance the information/intelligence sharing, analysis and dissemination which will be to the benefit of the freight Industry as well as the wider Business community.”
Nottinghamshire Police Deputy Chief Constable Sue Fish, is the ACPO National Policing Lead for Business Crime Reduction. She said: “We speak of collaboration not isolation. The National Business Crime Solution re-launch of TruckPol is welcomed as it adds the vehicle crime dimension that we need to provide the whole intelligence picture necessary to address business crime.
The fact that the business community are willing to support the re-introduction of TruckPol financially with a clear desire that it is run by the NBCS is testament to the developing momentum that the public private intelligence partnership is having on addressing business crime in all its forms.”
The NBCS is underpinned by a live information and intelligence-sharing platform, which is signed up to by some UK retailers and other businesses for crime data sharing. Registered users can submit their business crime data into the system; it’s then analysed and sent to other participating business members locally, regionally, nationally or by sector. The NBCS points to cases of businesses identifying and seeing in court prolific cross-border offenders. In one recent case, intervention by the NBCS led to several arrests of cross border criminals plus property of £200,000 recovered.
NBCS will seek to provide analysis and research services specific to freight and logistics crime data and issue timely alerts, bulletins and reports highlighting ‘live time’ incidents, hotspots and crime trends.
Gloucestershire Chief Constable Suzette Davenport, ACPO lead for Roads Policing in England and Wales, said: “Many criminals use the road network to commit their crimes. The intelligent and proactive use of roads policing resources can disrupt criminal groups and deny them free use of the roads helping to prevent and detect crime and keep communities safe. The use of the strategic road network is integral to the commission of serious organised crime and freight crime alone costs the UK economy an estimated £1 billion annually.
“As the national lead for roads policing I would like to endorse my full support for the re-launch of TruckPol, a private sector initiative, led by UK business, providing valuable flows of information and intelligence on those criminals who travel across the road network.
I am sure that such information sharing between all partners will promote joint enforcement activity and provide cost effective interventions as we strive to disrupt criminal organisations using the roads.”
Contact
For more on TruckPol and the NBCS, contact Catherine Bowen, Policy & Stakeholder Director – National Business Crime Solution at [email protected]
