Retail crime report

Introduction

It is no exaggeration to say that, across the country, retail crime has reached unprecedented levels.

An astonishing 530,643 shoplifting offences were recorded in the year to March 2025, according to the Office for National Statistics. This is the highest level since current police recording practices began in the year to March 2003.

Of course, those in the business community will already be aware that the true figure is likely to be far higher.

While Surrey remains one of the safest counties in the UK, we are not immune from this. However, I would like to note here that Surrey Police recorded far fewer shoplifting crimes than our neighbouring forces – 6,622, compared with, for example, 16,014 in Hampshire or 20,048 in Thames Valley.

Cost of retail crime

As Surrey’s Police and Crime Commissioner, I am in a unique position to work alongside police, the Government and business-owners as part of efforts to respond to the challenges retail crime poses.

As a result, earlier this year, and in tandem with Surrey Police, I launched a wide-ranging retail crime survey specifically aimed at those in the business community.

I wanted to hear about the impact of retail crime – financially, strategically, and of course, emotionally. I wanted to understand how the business community feels about the policing response to this crime type, and what can be done better.

Survey launched

We had a range of responses, for which I thank all those who took the time to complete an in-depth and fairly lengthy survey. These responses are summarised and shared in the pages after this, along with Surrey Police’s commitment to tackling retail crime, and some recent success stories.

It is clear there are many reasons for the surge in this type of offending, and that a policing response is not the sole answer to some of these issues. This is a complex, societal crime that, contrary to popular opinion, knows no class or sex restrictions.

The criminal justice system, local authorities, politicians and every member of the public must band together with officers to treat retail crime with the seriousness it deserves.

Complex crime

Retail crime does not exist in a vacuum. It goes hand-in-hand with other serious criminality, including abuse, threats and violence, as well as organised criminality, which poses a rising threat to retailers, as well as society at large.

In the pages to come, you can read about how one Guildford-based officer brought down an organised criminal group, or OCG, after being tasked to investigate a single shoplifting incident at Tesco.

But perpetrators can come from any background, and misconceptions around retail crime are common. This is not a ‘victimless’ crime – far from it. Its victims include every one of us impacted by rising costs, as well as entire local communities who feel less safe.

Change needed

There is also a pernicious and entrenched rumour that police will only attend in cases where items worth £200 or more have been stolen. This is something I have heard time and again, including from the mouths of politicians who should know better.

While this isn’t true, and I have been at the arrest of a shoplifter who stole an item worth £7.50 from a Redhill supermarket, it is clear that retail crime has slipped from being a priority crime for police across the country. This is not a situation we are prepared to tolerate, and both Surrey Police’s Chief Constable, Tim De Meyer, and I are committed to changing this in our lovely county.

We haven’t always got it right. But we are determined to do everything we can to support victims, protect property, and bring to justice those who target businesses.

Lisa Townsend,
Police and Crime Commissioner for Surrey

Contents

• Chief Constable’s introduction
• Our retail crime commitment
• Surrey Police’s retail crime strategy
• Survey responses
• What you told us
• How national chains are helping with the fight against retail crime
• More criminals brought to justice in Surrey
• How one Surrey PC brought down an OCG
• Clear, Hold, Build
• Safer Streets Summer
• How to report a crime

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