AMPLock Releases 2026 Report on Rising U.S. Trailer Theft

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The lock manufacturer’s new analysis shows trailer and cargo theft rising even as overall U.S. vehicle theft falls to a 40-year low.

DRUMMONDVILLE, QUEBEC, CANADA, October 20, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — AMPLock, a North American manufacturer of heavy-duty trailer locks, has published its 2026 U.S. Trailer Theft Report, a sourced analysis of trailer and cargo theft across the United States. The report documents a national divergence: overall motor vehicle theft fell 17 percent in 2024 to 850,708 vehicles, the largest drop in four decades, while trailer and cargo theft kept climbing.

Trailer theft is moving the opposite way from the rest of vehicle crime

According to the report, the measures that drove vehicle theft down, including factory immobilizers and law enforcement task forces, have not reached trailers. The average number of cargo thefts rose from 4.06 per day in 2023 to 6.07 per day in 2024, and more than 100,000 utility trailers are stolen every year, with recovery rates often below 30 percent. Without a tracking device, the report notes, recovery can fall as low as 7 percent.

The losses reach far beyond the trailer itself

Verisk CargoNet recorded 3,625 cargo theft incidents in 2024, representing $454.9 million in documented losses. Homeland Security Investigations places the full annual cost of cargo theft between $15 billion and $35 billion once supply chain disruption and insurance are counted. The report also documents severe underreporting: one tracker confirmed 2,217 cargo thefts in 2024 but estimated the real total exceeded 13,500.

A few states and asset types carry most of the losses

California, Texas, and Illinois accounted for 46 percent of all U.S. cargo theft in 2024, and Dallas County alone saw reported incidents rise 78 percent year over year. Recreational owners are exposed too: more than 30,000 RVs were reported stolen in 2024, towable travel trailers made up about 82 percent of those incidents, and 41 percent of RV and trailer thefts happened at storage facilities.

Prevention is the one variable owners control

The report finds that basic physical security changes the odds: hitch locks deter an estimated 90 percent of opportunistic thieves, and pairing a purpose-built lock with tracking sharply improves recovery. As organized theft draws federal attention, including U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearings in July 2025, demand for stronger protection is growing. AMPLock is responding by expanding availability of its full custom-fit lineup, from trailer coupler locks and hitch locks to kingpin locks for commercial fleets, to more United States customers.

About AMPLock

AMPLock is a North American manufacturer that engineers custom-fit, keyed-alike heavy-duty locks for trailers, RVs, boats, and commercial fleets. The company machines its locks in its own facility from ductile cast iron and stainless steel, and serves individual owners, contractors, and fleet operators across the United States and Canada.

Alexandre Paré
AMPLock
+1 819-470-9757
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