Data: A quarter of shoppers witnessed shoplifting last year
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has warned that shoplifting has become "all-too-common" as it found that over 16 million customers have witnessed shoplifting across the UK in the last 12 months.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has warned that shoplifting has become “all-too-common” as it found that over 16 million customers have witnessed shoplifting across the UK in the last 12 months.
Nottingham and London were the two cities where incidents of shoplifting were witnessed by the highest percentage of shoppers, ranking at 32% and 29% respectively.
Across the UK overall, 24% of shoppers have witnessed an incident of shoplifting over the past year.
Survey data from the BRC-Opinium poll also found that 23% of customers across the UK witnessed an incident of physical or verbal abuse of shop staff over the past year. This percentage rose to 30% and 29% in London and Nottingham respectively.
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The BRC-Opinium survey follows a report from the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) earlier this week, which found that shoplifting and incidents of staff abuse rose to 17,000 across corner shops last year, costing the convenience sector £316m.
The shopworkers union Usdaw also found that 77% of retail staff experienced abuse last year, while 53% have been threatened and 10% assaulted.
BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said: “Seeing incidents of theft or abuse has become an all-too-common part of the shopping experience for many people.
“While an incident can be over in a matter of seconds, it can have life-long consequences on those who experience it, making them think twice about visiting their local high streets.
“Criminals are becoming bolder and more aggressive, and decisive action is needed to put an end to it. The Crime and Policing Bill is a crucial step in providing additional protections to retail workers.”
Crime and prevention measures taken by retailers cost the sector £4.2bn overall last year.
Tesco stepped up its fight against the rise in retail crime by launching its own new high-tech security hub last month.
The grocery giant has invested millions of pounds into a 24/7 security centre based in Daventry, Northamptonshire, where a team of experts examine thousands of hours of CCTV footage.
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