Most shops will likely have to deal with shoplifters. Reports indicate that shoplifters across the country may be getting increasingly “brazen”, and that shoplifting may be costing UK stores up to £2bn a year.
It might not be possible to entirely eliminate shoplifting from your store. But with the right shoplifting policies and procedures, you can at least manage and mitigate the loss.
In this post we will discuss what you should include in your shoplifting policies and procedures, and how you can communicate them with your staff to ensure they are enforced.
What Are Shoplifting Policies and Procedures?
Shoplifting policies and procedures are documents that explain your shop’s approach to shoplifting. Usually, shoplifting policies and procedures will provide:
- A definition of shoplifting. What exactly is it, and how does if differ from other forms of theft?
- Outline the scale of the problem
- Provide steps your staff can take if they suspect that shoplifting is taking place.
One thing to bear in mind: Shoplifters can get violent and abusive when confronted. Your shoplifting policy and procedures should account for this. While taking steps to reduce loss, you should never lose sight of your staff’s safety and wellbeing.
Staff Training on Shoplifting
As part of your shoplifting policies and procedures, you should include some mandatory training for all staff. This could cover:
- Understanding shoplifting, and common shoplifting techniques.
- Customer service techniques to deter potential thieves. For example, approaching and politely engaging with a potential thief, without confronting them directly, could let the thief know that they are being monitored.
- Procedures for safely handling incidents of shoplifting. When should staff intervene, and when should they refrain, to avoid personal injury? And if they cannot prevent the theft, how should they record and report it, and what other steps should they take afterward?
- Following an incident, you should make time for a review to discuss the matter with any staff who were involved. But this is not a disciplinary procedure. It is an opportunity to highlight what went wrong, along with any steps you and your staff could take to prevent further theft.
Regular Stock Takes
As part of your shoplifting policy and procedures, you should carry out regular stock takes. As well as giving you an idea of the scale of your loss, it could also help you identify the sort of items in your store that thieves are most likely to target and when.
If you can spot any patterns of theft, you might have an idea of the steps you can take to reduce the risk.
Identify High Risk Items
Are thieves more likely to target certain items in your store? Your policy and procedures should identify these items, and outline the steps your store will take to protect these items.
If your staff know what sort of items thieves will prioritise, they will know to be extra vigilant should they see anyone acting suspiciously around them.
Security Procedures to Reduce Shoplifting
Outline the systems you have in place, or that you intend to install, to manage theft in your store. These might include:
- CCTV systems
- Electronic article surveillance (EAS) tags, and other anti-theft devices
- Locked cabinets and display for your more expensive items
- Facial recognition software
- Signage to let potential thieves know about the systems you have in place
Your shoplifting policies and procedures should outline how you expect your staff to interact with these systems. For example, will you use CCTV passively, so as to ensure that you have a record of any incident? Or do you expect your staff to actively monitor the feeds to prevent theft?
How to Communicate Your Shoplifting Policy and Procedures
It is one thing to have shoplifting policy and procedures. But it is equally important to communicate your policy, to ensure that your staff can understand and enforce your procedures.
First, you should share your policies and procedures with all new hires during their induction. All staff should get a refresher at least once a year too, perhaps as part of their appraisals.
You could also create an accessible version of your policies and procedures, perhaps in the form of a graphic poster, which you could hang in the staff room.
Get The Right Cover For Your Retail Store
Specialist retail shop insurance can help protect your store from many of the risks you face. A comprehensive policy may not prevent shoplifting, but it can give you the cover you need to bounce back from any major disruptions or disasters.
James Hallam is an independent Lloyd’s broker with a dedicated team of experienced insurance professionals who care about protecting your store. Whether you run an online store, a single high street shop, or a chain of shops, we can help you get the cover you need at a price you can afford.