Britain: Shop Owners Battle Against Shoplifting
Shop owners who are engaged in a “losing battle” and are frustrated by the shoplifting epidemic in Britain claim that the number of thefts has increased by 25% over the previous year.
As a wave of retail crime sweeps the nation, traders are seeing their highest-ever amounts of shop thefts as aggressive and brazen thieves attack establishments.
Additionally, they have informed The Independent that it is a “waste of time” to call the police officials because they put themselves at risk by enforcing the law on their own.
An employee at Holland & Barrett in central London was doused a sprayed with a burning substance after confronting a shoplifter, and a burglar in Bristol lunged a knife at Tesco employees, illustrating the risks.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reports that in the year ending in June, there were approximately 365,164 shoplifting offences reported to police in England and Wales, a 25% increment from the previous year.
Retailers stand to lose and suffer loss of £953 million by 2022 as offenders appear to be directed by criminal gangs, and are growing “emboldened” according to the British Independent Retailers Association.
While many persons have pointed fingers at the problem in the cost of living, others, such as Dame Sharon White, the head of John Lewis, have said that “crime groups” are to be blamed.
The largest number of store thefts has been seen in London, which is 47,153 in number. Upto 1% increase from the previous year, according to ONS data records. West Yorkshire comes at number second position and then West Midlands, where the numbers have increased by 26% to 19,172, with Birmingham serving as the epicentre of the region.
Shop owners and shopkeepers in Birmingham report that they deal with up to ten shoplifting instances per day. These instances involve offenders ranging from children of 10 years of age to organized criminals. They also stated that local police seem inefficient and powerless.
A chemist in one part has even created a “wall of shame” at his business listing potential shoplifters. DIY store keepers Whasuf Farooq stresses that companies must now take precautions to protect themselves.
He further stated that it is a major issue for all shops, and is getting worse it has turned into an epidemic. People are stealing such small things; they are unable to stop themselves because it has become a habit.
A security guard is hired at the large Poundland store in the city centre to deter shoplifters, but sales associate Kelvin Blake claims that this does not suppress criminals.
Different people try it, including suit-wearing persons, the homeless, and even kids, as soon as they leave the front door, they realise that they are free because they are not being pursued outside.
A stronger deterrent is what is required by these shop owners. One day Kelvin witnessed people being apprehended and turned over to the police, and the next, they returned to attempt the theft.
Mohammed Abrar, manager of MS Cosmetics, a store near the Bullring shopping area, stated that he caught several shoplifters every day, many of whom were youth, who target low-value goods like lip balm.
He even said that when one day, he stopped these shoplifters, they either admitted or tried to flee away. These shoplifters are unable to catch everyone, which hurts them the most. If young individuals are detected, then parenting needs to be questioned. These shoppers are suffering from losses equal to £30 a day, as per Abrar.
Similar instances as reported by Junaid Ahmed have been reported from Beauty Central, where he reported to stationing employees at the door and practically tagging every displayed item.
Businesses in the core areas are severely impacted because of increasing theft and antisocial behaviour, as per West Midlands Police. According to a force spokesman, patrols have been “ramped up” to target frequent shoplifters and lower crime rates.
Bosses of Tesco and Primark, and 90 corporate executives nationwide, expressed their concerns about retail crime, particularly violence against workers, in a letter to Home Secretary Suella Braverman.
The Government is already planning to bring such criminals into the regime of prison sentences for repeat shoplifters. To catch the criminals, the met police are deploying facial recognition technology.
Although there are worries that individuals may experience a cost of living crisis, which will eventually turn worse, they are penalized heavily.
