Retailers invest in Security to prevent crime

The retail sector continues to face difficult challenges including serious and organised crime such as burglary and ATM ram raids which are extremely costly. Although organised crime has fallen slightly in 2020, this particular fact has been directly correlated to COVID-19 lockdowns.

Lost revenue

In March, the ACS (Association of Convenience Stores) published their Crime Report and reported 1.1m incidents of customer theft in 2020. To fight against criminal activity, retailers have invested £175m in crime prevention across the sector. This investment in security measures focuses on making staff and customers safe, as well as providing customers with a pleasant shopping experience.

Security Investment

In 2020 the retail sector spent £175M on crime prevention equipment, including more investment in security staff, intruder alarms and external security.

Conspicuous CCTV and monitors

Installing CCTV cameras and monitors above checkouts is proven to deter customers from stealing goods. In addition, it can help identify offenders and provide evidence if necessary.

Headsets

When staff are wearing headsets, they can instantly communicate with the central security team and report any suspicious activity or request security guard assistance if needed.

Facial Recognition

This may not be a new technology but many stores use facial recognition to alert the security team within seconds if a subject of interest has entered a store from a growing database of people for which there is evidence of committing an unlawful act.

Body worn cameras

One of the main supermarkets in the UK has rolled out the use of body worn cameras for staff in over 250 stores. This acts as a confrontation preventor and greatly speeds up the handling of incidents according to one retailer.

Most of these security solutions are being implemented in stores across the UK as retailers continue to invest and upgrade their security measures.

Scams to be aware of:

Proven Solutions

Quality Essential Distribution specialise in providing security solutions for the retail sector, specifically supermarkets and if you are working with this sector why not contact us and discover the latest security technology that is keeping staff and customers safe and secure.

References:
Crime Report 2021 | ACS | The Association of Convenience Stores