Violence and intimidation are on the increase
The British Retail Consortium has revealed a worrying picture of retail crime in the UK, with crime and the cost of preventing it soaring since 2003.

The 12th Retail Crime Survey, released today, shows that crime cost the retail sector£2.13 billion last year, a 9 per cent increase from the£1.96 billion the previous year.

Violence against retail staff is rising in particular, with verbal abuse soaring up 35 per cent compared with 2003. Physical violence shot up by 14 per cent from 2003, and has been rising since 2000.

BRC director-general Kevin Hawkins said: 'Over the past five years, retailers have spent more than£3.5 billion on crime prevention, yet the losses over the same period have been more than double the value of this investment - more than£7 billion. The most disturbing figure is the growing trend of verbal and physical violence experienced by retailers. '

The BRC launched the SCAR (Stop Crime Against Retail) campaign recently, and will be lobbying police to encourage victims to report crimes. It also wants the Government to work with the sector to raise awareness.

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