Retailers Seek Government Help On Retail Crime

Ninety-one retail leaders have signed a letter to the Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, demanding action over rising rates of retail crime. 

The 2023 BRC Crime Survey showed that incidents of violence and abuse towards retail colleagues had almost doubled on pre-pandemic levels to 867 incidents every day in 2021/22. It also put the scale of retail theft at £953m, despite over £700m in crime prevention spending by retailers. This meant the total cost of retail crime stood at a whopping £1.76bn for the 12-month period to April. 

The situation has clearly got worse; a separate BRC survey of members in 2023 found that levels of shoplifting in ten major cities had risen by an average of 27%. This is not to mention the cascade of recent press stories detailing the wave of theft and violence currently impacting shops across the UK. 

The retail industry is making two demands of Government:

1. For the Government to create a standalone offence of assaulting or abusing a retail worker, with tougher sentences for offenders. This would act as a deterrent and provide a clear message that parliament will not tolerate this behaviour. It would also require police forces to record all incidents of retail crime, allowing for better allocation of resources to the issue.  
   
   
2. Greater prioritisation of retail crime by police forces across the UK. For one major retailer, the police's own data shows that they failed to respond to 73% of serious retail crimes that were reported. 44% of retailers in the BRC’s annual crime survey rated the police response as ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’.

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said:

It is vital that action is taken before the scourge of retail crime gets any worse. We are seeing organised gangs threatening staff with weapons and emptying stores. We are seeing violence against colleagues who are doing their job and asking for age-verification. We are seeing a torrent of abuse aimed at hardworking shop staff. It’s simply unacceptable – no one should have to go to work fearing for their safety.It’s time the Government put their words into action. We need to see a standalone offence for assaulting or abusing a retail worker – as exists in Scotland. We need Government to stand with the millions of retail workers who kept us safe and fed during the pandemic – and support them, as those workers supported us. 

The letter read:

Dear Home Secretary,

We are writing to ask you to take action to support our colleagues who continue to face unacceptable levels of violence and abuse, amid a rise in theft, much of it organised crime, and anti-social behaviour which in many cases are the root cause of violent incidents. 

The latest BRC Crime Survey, covering the period from 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022, reported more than 850 incidents of violence and abuse against retail workers every day, and a more recent survey found theft had risen by a further 27% across 10 of the UK’s largest cities over the last year. Recent high-profile interventions by some retail CEOs show that these trends are getting worse. At the same time, retailers lost £953m to shoplifting and invested £715m on crime prevention measures. Many retailers are also making significant investments in technology solutions to tackle the issue.   

In 2021, the government amended the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill to place into statute the aggravating factor applied by the courts in cases of assault, as set out in Sentencing Council guidelines, for offences committed against those providing a public service or performing a public duty. This was welcomed by the retail industry as it showed the government understood the scale of the issue, but it is now clear that it did not go far enough. The Ministry of Justice is not able to track data on the amendment, so it is impossible to tell if it is effective, yet the situation in our businesses continues to deteriorate. 

Firstly, we ask you to address this issue by creating a new statutory offence of assaulting, threatening, or abusing a retail worker, allowing for violent incidents resulting from retail workers enforcing a statutory age restriction or preventing theft, to be charged as an aggravated offence – similar to the 2021 Protection of Workers (Retail and Age-restricted Goods and Services) Act passed in Scotland. This standalone offence would send an important signal that our colleagues will receive better protection in law and act as a deterrent to would-be offenders. This action should be taken without delay. 

Secondly, the police also need to prioritise these offences and improve their response to incidents. While the police face challenges across numerous competing priorities, 44% of BRC members rate the police response as poor or very poor.         

For one major retailer, the police's own data shows that they failed to respond to 73% of serious retail crimes that were reported. The police consistently tell us that a lack of data about these offences means they have no visibility about the nature or scale of the issue. While retailers are working to improve reporting of incidents, and we have developed strong and effective partnerships with police in many parts of the country, a standalone offence would vastly improve that visibility so that the police can allocate appropriate resources and improve their response. 

Your department's continued focus on retail crime is welcome, and the discussion at the recent meeting with the Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire provided an excellent opportunity for some businesses to identify the most significant threats and potential solutions. While we look forward to supporting the development of the action plan emerging from that meeting, it is our firm view that this standalone offence is also needed. We ask that you treat this request with the seriousness that it deserves and would be keen to meet with you to discuss the issue in more detail. 

Signatories are: Adena Services; Aldi UK; Amazon UK Services; Airwair International – Dr Martens; Ann Summers; ASDA Stores; Associated Independent Stores; B&Q; Barker and Stonehouse; Benson for Beds Retail; Bestways Wholesale; BIRA; Booksellers Association; Boots UK; Bravissimo; Breitling UK; British Heart Foundation; British Retail Consortium; Burberry; C&J Clark International; Caffe Nero UK; Card Factory; Carpetright; Central Co-op; Company Shop; Currys; Dobbies Garden Centres Group; Dune Group; Dunelm Group; EH Booths & Co; F Hinds; Fishpools; Fortnum & Mason; Fraser Hart; Getir UK; Greggs; H&M Hennes & Mauritz UK; Harvey Nichols; HMV; Holland & Barrett; Homebase; Horticultural Trades Association; Iceland Food; IKEA UK; JD Sports Fashion; JD Outdoor; Jigsaw; John Lewis Partnership; JoJo Maman Bébé; Kingfisher; Krispy Kreme UK; Laser Clinics; LEON Restaurants; Liberty Retail; Marks & Spencer; Matalan Retail; McDonald’s UK & Ireland; National Federation of Retail Newsagents; New Look Retailers; OKA Direct; Post Office; Primark; Radley+Co; Retail Trust; RETRA; Richer Sounds; Rigby & Peller; Sainsbury's; Savers Health and Beauty; Scottish Midland Co-operative Society; Screwfix; ScS Group; Sephora UK; Space NK; Spar UK; Starbucks UK; Superdrug Stores; Tesco Stores; TFG Brands (London) ; The Co-operative Group; The Perfume Shop; The Southern Co-operative; The Watches of Switzerland Group; The Works Stores; USDAW; Well Pharmacy; WHSmith; Wm Morrison Supermarkets

Source : BRC

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