Securing your practice from theft

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%.