Incidences of recorded shop theft in England and Wales have continued at near record levels, growing 13% to 530,000 for the year ending June 2025, according to the Office for National Statistics.
It marks a slower rate of growth for the offences recorded for the year ending March 2025, which grew 20% to 530,643 offences, the highest on record.
Trade bodies have highlighted, however, that the ONS statistics still fall short of the real incident rate as it only tracks reported offences.
“Retail theft is a major issue for retailers, costing over £2.2bn a year,” said BRC crime policy advisor Lucy Whing. “While ONS figures do not reveal the true scale of the issue, it chimes with our own statistics, which show shoplifting soaring in recent years.
“The causes are manifold, but the rise in organised crime is a particular concern, with gangs systematically hitting stores one after another, all over the country.”
The ACS’s 2025 Crime Report showed there were over 6.2 million incidents of theft recorded by convenience retailers alone over the past year, suggesting a major gap between what is happening on the ground and what is being recorded by forces, the trade body said.
ACS CEO James Lowman said: “Tackling theft remains the top priority issue for the convenience sector and we continue to encourage retailers to report incidents when they occur.
“While shocking, the latest record figures from the ONS show that more reporting of crime is happening and the gap between what the police record and what happens is starting to close.”
The latest shop theft figures come after the Crime and Policing Bill completed its second reading in the House of Lords last week.
Trade bodies welcomed the move, saying it put the sector a step closer to tackling a surge in shop theft and protecting shopworkers from rising levels of abuse and violence.
“Theft is also a major trigger for violence and abuse against staff,” said Whing. “Fortunately, government and police are committed to turning the tide on crime.
“The bill will remove the £200 threshold for ‘low level’ theft, which will send a clear signal that all shoplifting is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
“It will also introduce a standalone offence for assaulting a retail worker, which will increase sentencing and improve the visibility of violence against retail workers so that police can allocate the necessary resources to tackle this challenge.
“We call on the government to ensure that the final act extends protections to include delivery drivers.”
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