RETAIL ENVIRONMENT
Violence and aggression factor in retail crime stats
Two new crime reports published this Spring point to a rise in violence and aggression against retail staff, compared to previous years.
The Association of Convenience Stores’ (ACS) 2018 Crime Report highlighted over 950,000 incidents of theft reported in corner shops over the last year, rising from 575,000 in the previous year – the equivalent of more than 200 thefts an hour, with many more going undetected.
The ACS said there was a significant rise in shop thefts that were also linked to aggressive behaviour towards retailers and their staff, the report said.
The latest annual Retail Crime Survey, published by the British Retail Consortium (BRC), has also revealed a spike in violence against staff causing injury, with the number of incidents – six per 1000 workers – happening at twice the rate of the previous record in last year’s survey. The BRC said that rate was equal to 13 people being injured every day of the year.
Incidents of violence without injury also increased, but abusive behaviour incidents reduced.
Most police forces now no longer attend reports of routine shop theft and will only send an officer to investigate if there has been a threat of violence against a member of staff.
According to the ACS, those caught stealing less than £200 are now dealt with by post, in the same way as speeding offences, leading to the effective decriminalisation of shoplifting.
Back in December, The Telegraph revealed that retailers had held private meetings with the Home Office at which they warned that "prolific and persistent" offenders were now exploiting the rules by moving around high streets stealing just under £200 worth of goods.
According to the report the total cost of crimes committed against the convenience sector over the last year was £193 million, which equates to a 7p "crime tax" on every transaction in stores.
In addition, small stores are also battling against fraudulent payment in the form of counterfeit notes and credit and debit card fraud, which amounted to £24 million last year.
The ACS's chief executive, James Lowman, said: “Retailers and their staff are facing violence and abuse on a regular basis for enforcing the law, whether it be through challenging shop thieves, refusing the sale of age restricted products like tobacco and alcohol, or refusing to serve people that are intoxicated.
"Allowing shop theft to go unpunished means that these people go on to commit other offences, and where they have addiction problems they are not treated. We need fresh thinking from government and the police, because when shop theft is not tackled properly, it has wider implications for communities."
According to the BRC, the overall total direct cost of retail crime has risen by six per cent from £660 million to just over £700 million, with crime in all categories growing except for fraud. It highlighted that there had been a reduction on last year’s overall figure for total number of incidents reported, but conceded the current rate was the second-highest ever recorded.
The survey also indicated that the cost of customer theft also surged by nearly 15 per cent, costing the UK retail industry £65 million. However, when factoring in damage, employee theft and robberies and burglaries, the year-on-year growth in total recorded incidents for this category rose by six per cent.
Meanwhile, nearly half of survey respondents said they have seen an increase in the number of cyber attacks in the last year.
The BRC also made a “very conservative estimate” that retailers this year spent £29 million on non-cyber crime prevention, a dramatic increase on the £6.7 million recorded the year prior. This means that on average, retailers this year spent around the same on non-cyber crime prevention in 12 weeks as they did in the whole previous year.
The only category to have seen some improvement is fraud, with the total cost of fraud to retailers falling by 15 per cent to £155 million.
The BRC said that overall, this year’s survey presented “a mixed picture” but they are still working on a new approach to tackle the worrying crime rates.
“Retail already faces its own challenges, with margins shrinking, and against that backdrop the pressures that retail crime exerts are having a stronger impact,” BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said.
“That is why we are working to build a new model for co-operation around tackling retail crime, and encourage decision-makers throughout the country to apply the priority these issues deserve.
“In particular, the figures on violence present a deeply concerning picture. Attacks on retail workers are intolerable, and our members are completely clear that keeping their staff safe and providing an environment in which they can work free of fear from threats and violence, is their first priority.
“Retailers are doing everything possible to ensure that staff members and customers are safe and protected. But they are now spending record amounts on crime prevention, which is a drag on the economic viability of shops and not infinitely sustainable.
“A new approach is required. Working with our key partners, we at the BRC are seeking to deliver an agreed strategy to halt violence and abuse in its tracks.”
