A 4% fall in shop theft incidents recorded by police has brought “cautious optimism” to the retail sector, as trade bodies warn the true scale of the crisis remains heavily underreported.
The Office for National Statistics recorded 507,086 offences during the year ending March 2026, compared with the previous year when 530,324 offences were recorded by police.
It acknowledged reporting rates for shoplifting were known to be very low and police were actively encouraging the reporting of all incidents and supporting evidence, such as CCTV, to strengthen intelligence, identify offenders, and link related offences.
Retail trade bodies and charities welcomed the progress, highlighting greater collaboration between retailers, police and government to tackle the problem, but warned more needed to be done.
“While today’s figures give a welcome indication of progress, the baseline challenge facing retailers across the country remains vast, and the pace of change is far too slow,” said British Retail Consortium crime policy advisor Lucy Whing. “Shop theft is not a victimless crime – it drives up prices for consumers everywhere and makes the workplace less safe for colleagues.
“The retail industry, in partnership with authorities, has made significant progress, with the new standalone offence for assaulting a retail worker, as well as the removal of the £200 threshold for ‘low-level’ theft. There is also more intelligence-sharing, targeted action against prolific offenders, and greater collaboration across the industry.
“But there is still much to be done, and it will be crucial that the new legislation is effectively enforced, with retailers and authorities continuing to work together so that this progress can continue.”
The ACS pointed to figures from its 2026 ACS Crime Report that showed there were over 5.8 million incidents of theft recorded by convenience retailers over the past year, highlighting the significant gap between what was happening on the ground and what was being recorded by forces.
“Tackling theft, abuse, robbery and other retail crime remains is a top priority for local shops, with over half a billion pounds spent in the last two years on crime prevention and detection measures,” said CEO Ed Woodall. “The official figures continue to highlight the challenges facing convenience stores, but we welcome significant positive steps that have been made throughout the last year on increasing the visibility and accessibility of police forces in communities.
“We must continue to focus on making it as straightforward as possible for retailers to report crime, for incidents to be responded to swiftly, and for interventions to be targeted at breaking the cycle of reoffending that blights communities across the country.”
The Federation of Independent Retailers (The Fed) president Hemanshu Patel added: “The Fed has consistently highlighted our members’ concerns about the high levels of retail crime and theft affecting independent retailers across the country – today’s figures suggest the situation may be beginning to stabilise, but the problem remains far too serious.
“While there are encouraging signs that retail crime may be levelling off, overall levels remain far too high and significant underreporting means the true scale of the problem is still not fully understood.”
Retail Trust CEO Chris Brook-Carter said: “Any reduction in retail crime is welcome, but today’s figures shouldn’t lead us to believe the job is done. Too many retail workers continue to experience abuse, threats and violence that can have a lasting impact on their confidence, wellbeing and sense of safety.”
“We’re beginning to see stronger protections through the Crime and Policing Act, alongside closer collaboration between retailers, police forces and organisations working to better protect shop workers. That momentum must continue so that every retail worker feels confident reporting incidents, knows they’ll be taken seriously and has access to the support they need if they’re affected.
“Our work with retailers and partners across the UK to improve reporting, provide practical training and ensure colleagues don’t have to cope with the impact of abuse on their own continues. Ultimately, success won’t be measured by crime figures alone, but by whether people working in retail genuinely feel safer, better supported and more confident every time they come to work.”
The new ONS data comes as the Crime and Policing Bill received royal assent in Parliament earlier this year. New measures include a separate offence for assaulting a retail worker and scrapping the so-called £200 “licence to steal” threshold.
Crime and policing Minister Sarah Jones said: “Shop theft has now fallen for a second consecutive period – dropping 4% in just the last year. Charges are up 19% in the last year alone, and almost one in four shop theft offences now lead to a charge.
“After years of neglect, we are making a difference. This is what happens when retail crime is finally treated with the seriousness it deserves.”
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