ACS Chief Executive, James Lowman, featured today on BBC Radio 2, the Jeremy Vine Show, talking about shop theft and a scheme in Durham proposing to let first time shop thieves off without any formal sanction.
Lowman said: “We support innovative approaches to tackling shop theft but we worry about the message that this sends. Shop theft is not a victimless crime, it has very serious implications for retailers, their staff and business.”
Shop theft accounts for 52% of the total cost of retail crime in the UK. ACS’ Crime Report 2014 estimates that shop theft cost the convenience sector £44 million last year.
ACS has called on the Government to develop a more robust response to shop theft and submitted evidence the Government’s Out of Court Disposals Review. In 2011 34,688 penalties notices were issued for retail theft and only 18,411 were paid in full.
