Violence and abuse against retail workers down by a fifth but ‘job far from done’
The British Retail Consortium’s new Crime Report has shown that violence and abuse against retail workers declined by a fifth from 2,000 incidents per day in 2023/4 to 1,600 last year.
The report attributes the improvement to sustained retailer investment and a stronger police response. The proportion of retailers rating police response as good or excellent rose to 13%, up from 9% last year.
Subscribe to TRBIt also highlights closer collaboration between retailers, police and government. Over the past five years, retailers have invested more than £5 billion in enhanced security including CCTV, security personnel and improved data collection.
Despite progress, the BRC said retail crime remains at unacceptably high levels. There are still around 1,600 incidents of violence and abuse each day, the second highest on record and well above the 455 daily incidents seen pre-pandemic (2019/20). Physical assaults remain steady at 118 per day, with 36 incidents daily involving a weapon.
Shoplifting reached 5.5 million detected cases last year, costing retailers nearly £400 million, as organised gangs increasingly target high-value, easily resold goods. The report also highlights delivery parcel theft for the first time, which cost retailers over £100 million last year.
With the Crime and Policing Bill due to pass into law soon, the BRC said retailers hope it will play a vital role in granting additional legal protections for retail workers and bringing down levels of theft.
The Bill will introduce a standalone offence for assaulting a retail worker and will also remove the £200 threshold for ‘low level’ theft.
The BRC maintains that the Bill should apply to all people working in customer facing roles, as is the case in Scotland. It is calling on the government to ensure that the final act extends the protections to delivery drivers.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, said: “This drop in violence and abuse has been hard won, but the job is far from done as numbers of incidents remain almost four times pre pandemic levels. Violence remains endemic. No one should go to work fearing for their safety, and we must redouble our efforts to bring these numbers much further down once and for all.
“Theft remains a huge issue, with an increasingly concerning link to organised criminal gangs, who continue to systematically target one store after another, stealing tens of thousands of pounds worth of goods in one go.
“Retailers, the police and government must continue to work together, building on the great work done so far, focusing on consistent enforcement, better data and intelligence sharing, and targeted action against prolific offenders and organised gangs.
“The £7 million investment announced in the policing White Paper is another welcome signal of government’s commitment to tackling organised retail crime. However, turning this into real impact requires sustained prioritisation and dedicated resourcing from police. For the sake of the three million hardworking people in retail, this work must not stop.”
