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The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has issued a warning that retail crime is spiraling out of control and that shoplifters are becoming more brazen and violent. The report shows that in the 12 months to September last year, customer theft rose 3.7 million to 20.4 million and cost UK retailers £2bn. According to the BRC, violence and abuse against shop workers also rose by 50%, with more than 2,000 such incidents recorded on average per day.
Shoplifting is often driven by organised gangs and prolific offenders stealing to order, according to Helen Dickinson, the BRC’s chief executive, who said offenders were becoming more daring because they “don’t see that there’s necessarily any consequences.” Social media is filled with videos of shoplifting, sometimes in front of shop workers and security officers who do not appear to step in.
Retailers are investing in security measures to tackle the issue, including CCTV, body-worn cameras, and an increase in security guards. However, retailers are struggling to encourage colleagues to intervene, as they run the risk of being attacked. As a result, shoplifting adds £133 to the cost of an average UK household’s shopping bill each year, according to The Centre for Retail Research.
Home Office Minister Dame Diana Johnson has called the rise in shop crime “utterly unacceptable”. She has pledged to bring in a new specific offence for assaulting retail workers, something the retail industry has been calling for since 2020. The proposed new legislation would help clarify the size of the problem and allow statistics to be collected.
Facilities management firm Mitie supplies 10,000 security guards to the UK retail sector. Its security director, Jason Towse, has said shoplifters have become more fearless because police resources have become more focused on “high-profile” crime. “The main issue for why people are using that ‘kamikaze’ approach is to scare colleagues and scare the staff,” he said. “They also know that the response from the police is not what it used to be.
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