Nearly 1 / 4 of the UK inhabitants (24%) – equating to over 16 million individuals – have witnessed shoplifting happening within the final 12 months.
Nottingham, the place 32% of the inhabitants have witnessed shoplifting first-hand, ranked the worst, with London following shut behind at 29%, then Southampton (28%), Leeds (26%) and Manchester (25%). In the meantime, Plymouth and Belfast noticed the least at 12% and 13%, respectively.
That’s in keeping with the most recent knowledge revealed by a British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Opinium survey, which additionally exhibits 23% of shoppers have witnessed bodily or verbal abuse of store employees, together with racial or sexual abuse, bodily assault or threats with weapons.
On the subject of abuse, clients in London witnessed probably the most incidents of a bodily or verbal nature at 30%. Nottingham and Liverpool had been second at 29%, with Manchester at 27% of shoppers.
The analysis comes because the UK experiences document ranges of retail crime with 20 million incidents of theft final yr, and incidents of violence and abuse climbing to over 2,000 per day.
Helen Dickinson, CEO of the British Retail Consortium, stated: “Seeing incidents of theft or abuse has grow to be an all too frequent a part of the procuring expertise for many individuals. Whereas an incident might be over in a matter of seconds, it could have life-long penalties on those that expertise it, making them suppose twice about visiting their native excessive streets.
“Criminals have gotten bolder and extra aggressive, and decisive motion is required to place an finish to it. The Crime and Policing Invoice is an important step in offering extra protections to retail staff.
“Nonetheless, in its present proposed kind, it doesn’t afford all retail staff the identical protections as these working in Scotland, the place supply drivers are additionally protected. The Invoice should shield everybody in buyer dealing with roles within the trade.”
Individually, shopworkers’ union Usdaw has produced its personal survey displaying 77% of retail employees experiencing abuse, with 53% receiving threats and 10% assaults. These incidents aren’t restricted to these working in shops, as supply drivers are additionally typically subjected to abuse, bodily violence and threats with weapons.
Crime prices retailers within the area of £4.2 billion final yr. That included £2.2 billion from shoplifting and one other £1.2 billion spent on crime prevention comparable to CCTV, extra safety personnel, anti-theft gadgets and physique worn cameras.
These prices add to the broader value pressures retailers already face, additional limiting funding and pushing up costs for patrons.
