Thief magnet: They want your freight — WHAT THE TRUCK?!?

Dooner and The Dude lay out what thieves are looking for in your freight

This Episode is brought to you by Reliance Partners-the nation’s premier commercial insurance agency for the transportation and logistics industry. Focus on your destination. Let us watch your back. Learn more about Reliance Partners at reliancepartners.com

Headlines

The DHL Supply Chain Pricing Power Index is slowly falling, finishing at 80 for this week. Spot rates and tender indices still have room to accelerate as 2020 finishes out.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has acknowledged the $700 million loan given to YRC Worldwide was a “risky” move, one he would not have made if it had been out of his personal bank. 

Celadon drivers are still upset following the company’s sudden bankruptcy last year and nearly 4,000 drivers and employees being let go. 

Building efficiency with an app

Dooner and The Dude bring on Eli Soler, president of Truckerd-In to talk about how his company is expediting trucker check-ins to minimize wait times. 

Truckers are now able to check in with one tap of the application, and they can do so before they even get to the warehouse. 

Soler says the method is “contactless and efficient and you’re checking in up to 30 drivers every three minutes!” 

Delivering Christmas cheer

Tracy Taylor runs a Christmas Tree farm out of Trade, Tennessee, and she joins WHAT THE TRUCK?!? to thank her drivers and the freight community for the hard work they put in to get trees where they need to go. 

“We have one of these weird products that can’t wait a week or two because Santa is coming!” says Taylor, hitting on how communication is the biggest key to moving trees. 

Taylor says there was a ton of demand for trees this year due to many factors, and farm closures have been one of the causes of this year’s tree shortage. 

What a thief wants

Scott Cornell, transportation lead and crime and theft specialist at Travelers Insurance, teaches Dooner and The Dude what types of freight are most likely to be stolen.

No matter what time of the year, “thieves target what they know they can sell,” says Cornell. He says while electronics are something most people would expect to be stolen, food and beverage top the list of what gets taken.

Cornell believes the increase in e-commerce might drive small-package theft from vans parked at delivery sites, but he also thinks large product volume amounts may encourage theft at distribution centers and warehouses. 

Managing mental health

Dooner recently opened up about his struggles with mental health and addiction in a TEDx Talk, and guest Amanda Poole, director of operations at DMX Logistics, joins the show to talk about her own struggles and seeking help in the logistics industry. 

They agree that it can be difficult to maintain a balance between seeking help and fulfilling your responsibilities, but they say everyone should have an avenue to seek help.

Poole’s advice is to take each day as it comes and to find what works for you personally to support your mental health. 
You can find more WHAT THE TRUCK?!? recaps and recaps for all our live podcasts here.

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