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Labor Day cargo theft incidents rise 70% over five years
Incidents peaked on the Friday before the holiday, while California, Texas, and Illinois accounted for 48% of total theft cases in the analysis.
Cargo theft during the Labor Day holiday period has risen steadily over the past five years, with incidents increasing to 56 in 2025 from 33 in 2021, a 70% jump, according to an analysis from Verisk CargoNet cited by Risk & Insurance.
The data show a pattern shift in timing, with criminals targeting the days surrounding the holiday rather than the long weekend itself. The busiest day across the five-year period was the Friday before Labor Day, with 55 incidents, followed by the Tuesday after the holiday with 49, and Thursday before with 46.
Across the four bracketing days, 194 of 273 total incidents occurred, representing 71% of activity, while Saturday, Sunday, and Labor Day Monday together accounted for 79 incidents, the report said. Risk & Insurance attributed this to the way deceptive pickup and non-delivery schemes depend on live staff, functioning phone lines, and freight moving through normal business channels.
Geographically, theft was concentrated in major freight corridors, with California, Texas, and Illinois accounting for 130 of 273 incidents, or 48% of the total. Risk & Insurance also said food and beverage shipments led with 49 incidents, and the threat is described as two overlapping risks, physical exposure and verification exposure when reduced staffing and time pressure make it easier for criminals to impersonate carriers or alter shipment instructions.