Business Theft: How To Better Prevent and Prepare For It

Sadly, theft is a reality for all businesses. Most businesses have data they need to protect. Some businesses have physical items they need to protect. Many of these businesses will need to protect the items from theft by staff and suppliers as well as theft by customers. Fortunately, this depends more on planning and organisation than budget. 

The three main threats to businesses 

Based on the 2021 Commercial Victimisation Survey (CVS), theft is almost three times as common as burglary. Theft by customers is significantly more common than theft by staff. 

When funds are limited, therefore, businesses should give the highest priority to measures against shoplifting. It is, however, unwise to ignore these other threats completely. Doing so can make you a soft target. This will increase your risk of being targeted for them. 

Protecting against shoplifters 

UK Business Crime from 2021 found that robbery and burglary was the most reported type of business related crime. Most businesses should be able to protect themselves against shoplifters at minimal to no expense.

There are two key steps you need to take to make this happen. The first is to lay out your store effectively. The second is to monitor your store robustly. 

Laying out your store effectively 

Your store layout is your first line of defence against shoplifters. It is possible to create a layout that works for legitimate shoppers (and staff) but deters shoplifters. Here are some points to consider. 

• Keep the door area as clear of merchandise as you can.
• Put your lowest-value and/or bulkiest merchandise nearest to the door.
• Have samples/boxes on display. Give shoppers the real items after they have paid.
• Use lockable display cabinets.
• Place your smallest and/or highest-value items in your till area (preferably behind it)
• Allow plenty of space for walking between displays/aisles.
• Position the till area as far away from the door as possible.
• Make sure any private areas (e.g., stock area) are both marked and secured. 

Once you’ve done all of this, ask yourself if all of your merchandise is as protected as you think it needs to be. If you still find yourself with items that are at higher risk than you’d like, try using electronic tags. 

Where possible, use tags that damage the goods if they are removed incorrectly. These are much more of a deterrent than tags that simply alert as a person goes through a door. Even if you have a security guard, they may not be able to stop a shoplifter from leaving with the item. 

Monitoring your store robustly 

Your ability to monitor your store robustly depends on your ability to maintain a clear view of it. This starts by keeping your store tidy and hence well-ordered. You, therefore, need a process to ensure that any clutter or mess is quickly dealt with. 

Developing this process gives you an opportunity to test how easy it is for you and your staff to see what actually happens in your store. If there are areas that routinely get out of order because they can’t be easily seen then you need to address this. Depending on your situation, this could mean adding a mirror, installing CCTV or having it regularly checked by staff. 

Likewise, you can only monitor activity in the store if you know there is activity in the store. It’s therefore advisable to have an alarm/bell at the door to alert you when it opens. 

Protecting against staff theft 

You should always vet potential staff members appropriately before you employ them. This will alert you to any issues in the past. You should not, however, assume that an absence of red flags means that there is no possibility that a staff member will commit theft. Your insurer certainly won’t. This means that you still need to implement appropriate access controls and supplement them with robust monitoring. 

Implementing access controls 

The best way to implement access controls is with access fobs. The main benefit of these is that they are assigned to individuals. This means that they automatically keep track of exactly who was in what area at what time. The secondary benefit of access fobs is that they are very easy to deactivate. This means you can immediately revoke access if a staff member leaves (or a card is lost). 

The next-best option is PINs. These cannot be assigned to individual staff members. You can assign different PINs for different doors. The more PINs you use, however, the more you increase the chances of staff members writing them down because they can’t remember them. Similarly, the more often you change PINs, the harder it becomes for staff to remember the current one. 

Keys are usually the worst option. It can be hard to keep effective track of them even with logbooks. They are also highly vulnerable to copying, loss and theft. What’s more, replacing keys and locks can become expensive. With all that said, using keys is a lot better than using nothing. 

Monitoring staff and inventory 

You should have a set process for opening the store, monitoring inventory regularly while the store is open and closing the store. It’s advisable to supplement these regular inventory checks with random ones. You may possibly want to implement random checks of lockers/bags. If you do, be very careful to do so appropriately and fairly. 

Protecting against burglary 

Protecting against burglary is mainly about preventing access to your building. Secure your perimeter as much as you can. Also, show clearly where your perimeter is. That will prevent people from being able to claim that they wandered into your space by accident. 

Keep your space clean, clear and well-lit. This deters burglars and also promotes safety. What’s more, good lighting is essential for CCTV to work effectively. Ideally, use monitored CCTV, this means potential burglars risk being caught while they are still on the scene. Alarms can be useful but generally only if they are monitored. 

Think about what potential burglars can see through glass doors and windows. If you must keep valuables on-site, keep them out of view. Ideally, put them in a locked room or safe. Any cash should certainly go in a safe (this will probably be an insurance requirement). You might also want to put up a notice saying that no cash is kept on the premises. 

Learn and prevent 

If any incidents do happen, analyse them and learn from them. Try to stop the same kind of incident from happening again.

About Newgate
Lucinda Thorpe is the Business Development Executive at Newgate, which are specialists in providing businesses in the UK & overseas with secured access solutions such as security barriers and gates, bollards and road blockers.