The surge in shop theft appears to be stabilising as incidents in England and Wales fell by 1% last year, according to new data.
The Office for National Statistics recorded 509,566 offences in the year ending December 2025, down from 516,611 the previous year.
Trade bodies have warned the figures only reflect reported incidents, leaving a “significant gap” with the true scale of shop theft.
“There remains a significant gap between the number of crimes reported to the police, and the number recorded by retailers,” said ACS CEO Ed Woodall. “We continue to encourage retailers to report incidents of theft and other crime when they occur, with any evidence they have available.”
The ACS revealed in March that shop theft in convenience stores had fallen for the first time since 2022, dropping 6.5% to 5.8 million incidents in 2025.
Federation of Independent Retailers national president Hetal Patel said there was continued evidence that incidents of shoplifting were levelling off but remained “unacceptably high”.
“The drop in the number of recorded offences is obviously a step in the right direction but follows a 20% increase in offences last year, so there clearly is no room for complacency,” he said.
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Lucy Whing, crime policy adviser at the BRC, said: “While ONS figures likely underestimate the issue, as it only captures reported incidents, it aligns with our own data showing high levels of shoplifting in recent years.”
The BRC recently revealed that theft remained a significant challenge for retailers, with 5.5 million detected incidents of shoplifting last year, costing retailers nearly £400m.
“The causes are manifold, but the rise in organised crime is particular worrying as gangs systematically target one store after another across the country,” added Whing.
The Crime and Policing Bill, which will abolish the £200 threshold for ‘low-level’ theft and create a specific offence for assaulting retail workers, will soon receive royal assent.
“It is vital that the police make full use of this new legislation so we can bring these numbers down once and for all,” said Whing.
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