'Alarming' increase in retail crime as Hampshire is named the most effective force in new report
Hampshire Police have been named as the most effective force in the country at tackling retail crime as figures reveal an alarming increase in shoplifting across the country.
A new report on retail crime released by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) placed Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary at the top of the list after it asked retailers to rate each police force.
It comes as statistics for England and Wales show that in the year to September 2024, there was a 23 per cent increase in shoplifting continuing a trend of persistent quarterly increases, with incidents now having doubled since the pandemic. In Hampshire and the Isle of Wight this increase was 17 per cent.
Retail violence and abuse increased across the country over 50 per cent to more than 2,000 incidents a day in 2024 with an increasing number of organised gangs involved and stealing to order.
Retail trade union Usdaw’s latest annual survey of over 4,000 retail staff also showed that 17 per cent of retail workers across the country suffered a violent attack last year, compared to eight per cent in 2022. It said that seven in 10 respondents said that incidents of violence, threats and abuse they’d experienced were triggered by theft or armed robbery.
Paddy Lillis, Usdaw general secretary said shoplifting ‘has a very direct impact on the viability of stores, as retailers go to increasing lengths and expense to make them secure and safe’.
He said: “Communities are blighted by anti-social behaviour and store closures. Staff are working in fear of the next incident of abuse, threats or violence.
“It is increasingly common for retail stores to be targeted by organised crime gangs stealing to order. This is in no way a victimless crime, with weapons and violence used to ensure these criminals are not stopped. Having to deal with repeated and persistent offences can cause issues beyond the theft itself, like anxiety, fear and physical harm to retail workers. Usdaw’s survey of over 4,000 retail workers found that 70 per cent had suffered incidents of violence, threats and abuse that were triggered by theft and armed robbery.”
Hampshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones expressed her delight that the county was ‘leading the way in the fight against retail crime’ with businesses feeling more confident about reporting incidents of crime.
She said: ”While figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) reveal there was a 17 per cent increase in the reporting of shoplifting in the region in the year ending September 2024, the Constabulary recorded a 151 per cent increase in action being taken against shoplifters and those committing business crime between November 2023 and November 2024.
The Police Commissioner launched a fresh offensive last October with the launch of her new Business Crime Partnership bringing together businesses, the police, public sector agencies and other organisations to bear down on retail crime.
PCC Donna Jones added: “I have ensured a zero tolerance approach to business and retail crime across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. The new figures and feedback from the British Retail Consortium show that we mean business. The force will continue to provide a robust response to business crime and will support retailers through their city centre teams.”
HIOWC Chief Inspector Marcus Cator said that police forces across the country are seeing an increase in the number of reported shoplifting offences which ‘for a long time that shoplifting is an under-reported crime’.
He said: "We have been working closely with the business community to build their trust and confidence that reports of shoplifting will be investigated. We have also launched dedicated city centre teams in Portsmouth and Southampton, and are working with Business Crime Reduction Partnerships and Business Improvement Districts elsewhere, to allow us to use effective disruptive tactics, including issuing criminal behaviour orders, to tackle offending.
"It is not acceptable for retail staff to come to work and fear criminality, anti-social behaviour or violence. We will continue our focused efforts to support local businesses by tackling theft and other offences against them."