Skip to content
Search
AI Powered
Human content, AI powered search.
Latest Stories

Concern raised over '23 per cent increase' in shoplifting

Concern raised over '23 per cent increase' in shoplifting
Pooja Shrivastava
By Pooja ShrivastavaMay 24, 2023
Pooja Shrivastava
A passionate journalist with about a decade of experience, Pooja has developed a strong hold on the UK grocery retail sector. From exploring legislative changes, supply chain shifts, consumer buying habits, trends to retail crime, her work is driven by a deep belief in investigating, finding the truth and telling authentic unbiased stories. Be it convenience pathbreakers, wholesale trendsetters or Post Office Horizon scandal victims, Pooja has an equal flair for deciphering industries as well as human complexities. At Asian Trader, she aims to bridge the gap between policy, trade, and the shop floor, always keeping a finger on the pulse of what matters most to retailers.
See Full Bio
Follow:
There has been a sharp 23 per cent rise in shoplifting in the year ending December 2022, showed Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW), drawing concerns from a leading shop workers union.
Shopworkers’ trade union Usdaw has expressed deep concern over the recent police recorded crime statistics for England and Wales of 12 months to December 2022. This continues the trend of persistent quarterly increases after a dramatic decrease during the pandemic.
Shoplifting was decreasing slowly from a 2017 peak and plummeted during the pandemic. While the number of reported incidents haven’t returned to pre-pandemic levels, they are well on the way after increases in the last four consecutive quarters.

Comparing the end of year stats on police recorded shoplifting clearly demonstrates the trend:

202220212020201920182017
+23 per cent-1 per cent-29 per cent-2 per cent-3 per cent+8 per cent
Usdaw’s latest annual survey of over 7,500 shopworkers found that 31 per cent of incidents of violence, threats and abuse related to shoplifting in 2022, which is not only higher than in 2019 but also more than double the 2016 level.
Reacting to the recent figures, Paddy Lillis, Usdaw General Secretary stated that shoplifting is not a victimless crime, theft from shops has long been a major flashpoint for violence and abuse against shopworkers.

"Having to deal with repeated and persistent shoplifters can cause issues beyond the theft itself like anxiety, fear and in some cases physical harm to retail workers. This 23 per cent increase in shoplifting shows the effect of Covid restrictions being lifted in stores last year. Social distancing and limiting the number of customers in stores does make life more difficult for shoplifters. The cost of living crisis is also a factor and theft from shops in itself contributes to rising prices as retailers try to recover losses.

“Our annual survey found that three-quarters of retail workers suffered abuse from customers, with far too many experiencing threats and violence. Theft from shops was the trigger for nearly a third of these incidents last year. Particularly concerning is that just over half of those who did the survey said they were not confident that reporting these issues will make any difference.

“Faced with such appallingly high levels of violence and abuse, and with many shopworkers’ lacking confidence in the ability of the system to give them the protection they need, much more needs to be done. The Government must provide the coordination needed to ensure that retail employers, police and the courts work together to make stores safe places for our members to work and for customers to shop.”

Related News