Theft prevention should be a top priority for any business. Opticians are no different. With small, easily pocketable items on display around the store they can be the target of shoplifters and robbers. Disturbingly, the cost of retail crime in the UK is on the rise. The British Retail Consortium’s (BRC) 2017 Retail Crime Survey noted a sustained rise in retail crimes such as shoplifting and placed the total cost of retail crime in the UK at £700m, which was a 6% rise on the previous year.
Its ‘biggest concern’, however, was the growth in severe violence against employees, with cases doubling since the 2016 survey. Investment from BRC members to prevent non-cybercrime was reported to be on average £29m each, compared with £6.7m the year before – an increase of more than 400%.
Worryingly, the massive increase in investment for prevention has not seen the level of retail crime reduce, in fact it has risen. So, what measures can a practice owner take to protect their staff and stock from would-be thieves?
Fittings, cameras and alarms
There are staple security measures that many practices will either have or be aware of, no matter their size. Their application and efficacy, however, varies depending on the circumstances, layout of the store and how comfortable staff are with using them.
International security company Secom advised Optician on some of the basics steps practices can take to ensure they are safe and secure. Alan Blake, commercial director at Secom, says: ‘The first priority for opticians must be to ensure the safety of customers and staff – particularly as many outlets are almost “lone worker” situations for at least part of the week. The second priority is to protect goods – especially high-value spectacle frames and the equipment used by optometrists during consultations.
‘The absolute minimum requirement should be secure doors and windows plus a wireless intruder alarm system that protects the premises overnight and at weekends – and can also be triggered by a staff member if there is an incident during working hours.’
A spokesperson from Specsavers, a member of the BRC, says: ‘We source approved suppliers to provide Specsavers partners the option to have CCTV, alarms, panic alarms, fire-retardant and fixed-floor safes for data back-up as well as cash safes.Security is now part of store design too – with fixtures being lowered to ensure a better line of sight through the store, and more furniture and equipment like tablets are set in fixed stands with alarmed security leads.’
Although, they added that ‘every few months, one of the 800 UK Specsavers store reports a break-in or theft – anything from a smashed door with nothing taken, to a handful of frames stolen in daylight to a whole safe being taken’.
Specsavers says that security ‘has got more sophisticated’ in recent years and it now employs ‘GPS tracking, automatic calls to the police, outsourcing alarm monitoring, panic alarms, CCTV-feeds that are able to be seen remotely on a smartphone and automatic lock down or remote-wipe of software in case of theft.’
No retail store is immune the prospect of shoplifting
Blake recommends using alarm systems that are monitored 24-hours so if a robbery occurs operators can dispatch a response officer. He also suggests using an internet-based communication device that ‘enables the operator to watch the situation and issue a verbal challenge or instructions to the incident scene’.
Smoking security
In April, a branch of Batty and Dexter Opticians in Hunts Cross was the scene of a late-night raid. Robbers engaged in a smash-and-grab in which a number of Ray-Ban sunglasses were stolen. The impact of the theft was significantly reduced by the presence of smoke alarms that forced the robbers to exit the premises prematurely, although the damage to the shop was still considerable.
Smoke or fog alarms work by filling the shop space with thick, disorientating vapour that blocks the vision of intruders, with the intention of causing them to abandon their crime early.
Karl Spinks, practice owner of Batty and Dexter, told Optician: ‘Four people arrived on two separate motorbikes. They smashed one of the doors, got into the opticians and then smashed open a sunglass stand that was located quite close to the front door. Then, very, very quickly the smoke system activated and when it did they couldn’t see anything. They had to break out of the other door as they couldn’t see where they had just got in from. So, they broke out through another front door, smashing their way out of the premises immediately.’
Spinks said the equipment, which is linked to the overall alarm system, ‘limited the amount of theft and damage they could do – they only managed to steal around 20 pairs of Ray-Bans’. Spinks had suffered another break in about eight years ago. After that he did some research and decided that the smoke system was the most effective and went to see it for himself in person. ‘Within about five seconds of it being activated you can’t see your hand in front of your face. You don’t know which ways up or down, it’s amazing.’
He is sceptical about both shutters and common alarm systems. ‘We have shutters on another practice and they are a waste of space unless they are in conjunction with a smoke system,’ he says. ‘They’re very easy to get through unless they are locked to the floor as well because they’re easily lifted up, it’s done in seconds.’ As for alarms ‘they know they have five minutes to rob as much as they can, so they can take their time’.
‘The only way to stop robbers in-store is a smoke system. It’s the best security you can have,’ he adds.
Blake of Secom says: ‘Designed to trigger in the event of a “confirmed” intruder alarm activation, these systems rapidly deploy a dense but harmless vapour that effectively “blindfolds” the intruder, foiling any attempted robbery and making escape difficult.’
He also spoke of smoke alarm’s efficacy during live robberies. ‘Many high value retailers find that a fogging system triggered by an incident button is an effective way to defuse serious events, such as armed robbery.’
Staff's role
It is not the responsibility of staff to repel a robber. Not only does this risk their own safety but could also risk that of patients in the store. Specsavers recommend staff cooperate with the robbers’ instructions and do not endanger themselves or others. It also advises its staff to not argue, to control their movements carefully so as not to agitate or trouble the intruder, and to make mental notes, if possible to do safely, about the appearance of the raiders (their height, age, weight, hair colour, etc) to be written down as soon as they are in a safe position. This can then be used for identification by the police.
‘Staff are trained in vigilance, loss prevention as well as functional essentials such as locks and alarms. Thankfully most incidents do not result in injury or significant loss. Where staff have been affected emotionally, Specsavers offers them a free one-to-one telephone counselling service,’ adds a spokesperson.
Secom also suggests installing equipment that would allow staff to trigger an alarm safely and silently. Blake says: ‘One of our large retail customers has installed incident support buttons, with which staff can silently alert our operators to an event in progress or expected to happen – and they can indicate the type of event: for example, shoplifting or assault.’
No silver bullet
While the above has covered some of the most effective mechanisms and procedures in terms of crime prevention and management, it is by no means a rigid set of rules. Thieves are creative in their approach and will seek to identify practices they believe are ripe for robbery. Those in charge of security should bear in mind that there is no silver bullet. Instead, a holistic approach that communicates with staff, insurers and security firms should always be undertaken to ensure that a practice has the right measures in place for that site.
Blake reminds us that ‘there is no hard-and-fast rule on additional physical security measures and precautionary practices’ and that ‘much depends on the level of risk and the requirements of insurers’.
‘Security technology has advanced tremendously in recent years, but there is no “one-size-fits-all” solution.’