Retailers see rise in shoplifting as downturn bites

By Robert Cookson

Published: November 10 2008 02:00 | Last updated: November 10 2008 02:00

Britain appears to be suffering a dramatic increase in shoplifting as the economic downturn starts to bite, with Tesco, the country's largest retailer, reporting thefts up by more than a third this year.

Two other big names on the high street - Iceland and Marks and Spencer - have have also revealed that criminal activity is on the rise in their stores.

Fear of a retail crimewave has intensified in recent weeks as retailers, analysts and the government warned that theft would surge as the economy contracted, a trend borne out in previous recessions.

Stephen Robertson, director-general of the British Retail Consortium, said: "Retailers are preparing for an upsurge in offences and are extending crime prevention methods, for example, placing electronic security tags on expensive cuts of meat."

Tesco caught more than 43,000 thieves stealing from its stores in the first half of the year - an increase of 36 per cent from a year earlier.

It also detected a worrying pattern: essential items were being stolen at a faster rate than luxury ones, suggesting that thieves were increasingly motivated by need as opposed to greed.

Mandy Gooding, Tesco's UK head of security, revealed the trend at a conference held by the British Retail Consortium last month to mark the publication of its annual crime survey. While retail crime fell in the 12 months to April, the BRC expects it to spring back rapidly.

Catherine Bowen, the head of crime policy at the BRC, said that although several retailers had reported signs of a shift from "greed to need" crime, it was too early to draw firm conclusions.

"The trend in the past has been for people to steal alcohol and things like that. Whereas we might see an increase in other items such as babyfood."

She said that as the credit crisis developed, people who would not normally buy stolen goods might become tempted to do so, making it much easier for thieves to offload their loot.

Leg of lamb is the most popular item stolen from Iceland, the frozen food specialist, closely followed by cheese, bacon and coffee.

Duncan Miles, its group head of security, said: "Leg of lamb gets stolen the most because it's an easy commodity to sell in pubs and people are always on the lookout for meat."

Iceland, which operates in some of Britain's most deprived areas, is at the sharp end of retail crime: physical attacks on staff are up 33 per cent on last year, and verbal abuse is 70 per cent higher.

Yet it is employees, not members of the public, who may pose the biggest problem for retailers as the economy sours, according to some analysts.

"When people do not feel secure in their job, they are more inclined to take a dishonest opportunity when it comes their way," said Geoffrey Northcott, founder of The Loss Prevention Company.