Incidents of violence and crime against retail staff down by a fifth but ‘job far from done’

Incidents of violence and retail crime were down to 1,600 a day in 2025, compared to more than 2,000 the previous year, according to the latest British Retail Consortium crime report. 

While the reduction in incidents was welcomed, the BRC said “levels of retail crime remain unacceptably high”, with the 1,600-a-day figure ”the second-highest on record and far beyond the 455 incidents per day pre-pandemic (2019/20)”.

The BRC said that of particular concern was the continued prevalence of incidents involving physical violence, which was largely unchanged year on year. 

There were also 5.5 million detected incidents of shoplifting last year, which cost the sector nearly £400m. However, the BRC said that because “many incidents go undetected” the true cost of shoplifting to the sector is likely “much higher”. It also noted that “organised criminal gangs are increasingly targeting high-value, easily resold goods, exploiting the lack of consequences from law enforcement”. 

However, the BRC said it hopes the passage into law of the Crime and Policing Bill “will play a vital role in granting additional legal protections for retail workers and bringing down levels of theft”. 

The bill will introduce a standalone offence for assaulting retail workers and remove the £200 threshold for ‘low-level’ theft, which the BRC said will ”send a strong message to offenders that all theft will not be tolerated”.

BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said: “This drop in violence and abuse has been hard won, but the job is far from done as numbers of incidents remain almost four times pre pandemic levels. Violence remains endemic. No one should go to work fearing for their safety, and we must redouble our efforts to bring these numbers much further down once and for all.

“Theft remains a huge issue, with an increasingly concerning link to organised criminal gangs, who continue to systematically target one store after another, stealing tens of thousands of pounds worth of goods in one go.

“Retailers, the police and government must continue to work together, building on the great work done so far, focusing on consistent enforcement, better data and intelligence sharing, and targeted action against prolific offenders and organised gangs. The £7m investment announced in the policing white paper is another welcome signal of government’s commitment to tackling organised retail crime. However, turning this into real impact requires sustained prioritisation and dedicated resourcing from police. For the sake of the 3 million hard-working people in retail, this work must not stop.”

Retail Trust chief executive Chris Brook-Carter said: “We hear from people every day who are so stressed and anxious that they’re afraid to go into work and are thinking of leaving their jobs. While any fall in violence and abuse is welcome, there are clearly still far too many retail workers being shouted at, threatened and attacked.

“We must turn this hard-won progress into long-lasting change. The government and the police are treating this problem more seriously than ever before and more retailers are also working with the Retail Trust to protect their people and support anyone affected by abuse. The entire retail industry now need to step up and get behind these efforts if we’re to stand any chance of restoring respect to our high streets once and for all.”