Theft leaves British retailers with a record $3.7 billion in losses
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The cost of retail theft rose 21 per cent in the year to Aug 31, 2024, from the year before.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
LONDON – Customer theft cost British retailers a record £2.2 billion (S$3.7 billion) in 2024 as they grappled with a persistent and worsening crime wave, a trade group said.
The cost of retail theft rose 21 per cent in the year to Aug 31, 2024, from the year before, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said in its latest crime survey, published Jan 30.
“Retail crime is spiralling out of control,” said Ms Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC. “Every day this continues, criminals are getting bolder and more aggressive.”
Retailers are struggling with an explosive rise in shoplifting after pandemic-linked inflation turbocharged the global illicit market for stolen goods.
The issue was worsened in Britain by the previous government’s decision to lower scrutiny of thefts worth less than £200 – a policy the current administration plans to scrap.
The BRC’s findings were based on a sample of retailers that employ more than 1.1 million staff, with collective annual revenue of £194 billion.
Incidents of violence and abuse rose more than 53 per cent in 2024 to an all-time high of just over 2,000 a day, up from 1,300, the BRC said. Only 10 per cent of those incidents resulted in police attending, while 2 per cent resulted in a conviction, it added.
In recent years, retailers have said a lag in police response times risks emboldening shoplifters. It has driven them to bolster in-store security. The cost of prevention measures such as CCTV rose 52 per cent from £1.2 billion to about £1.8 billion in 2024, the BRC found. BLOOMBERG
