Incidents of shoplifting reported to police have risen to their highest level in at least two decades, according to recent data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Last year, 430,104 shoplifting offenses were recorded in England and Wales, representing a significant increase of 37% on the previous 12 months. The figure represents the highest number of shoplifting incidents since recording practices began in the year to March 2003, the Office for National Statistics said.
The rise in shoplifting comes amid growing concerns from major retailers about the rising cost of theft. In addition, “thefts from persons,” including snatching and pickpocketing, reached 125,563 incidents in 2023, an increase of 18% from the previous year and the highest level since 2004.
Theft incidents also saw a slight increase last year, with a total of 81,094 crimes, representing a 13% increase on the previous year. However, when looking at the long term, theft rates have dropped significantly by 26% since 2003.
Knife-related crimes witnessed an increase of 7%, with police recording 49,489 crimes. Although this number is 3% lower than in 2015, it still indicates a worrying trend. Notably, the data on knife crime does not include information from Greater Manchester Police or Devon and Cornwall due to data recording issues.
On the positive side, fraud crimes saw a 16% decline, driven by a decline in bank and credit account fraud, as well as a notable 34% reduction in advance fee fraud. Likewise, criminal damage incidents decreased by 18%, including a significant 25% reduction in criminal damage to vehicles.
Nick Stripe, Head of Crime Statistics at the Office for National Statistics, commented on the marked increases in burglaries, theft from people and shoplifting. He stressed the significant increase in shoplifting incidents, with more than 100,000 other crimes reported, in addition to the highest levels of theft from people recorded in two decades.
Overall, the ONS Crime Survey for England and Wales estimated nearly 8.4 million criminal offenses in the year ending December 2023, indicating a relatively stable trend compared to the previous year. However, the data also showed a long-term decline in crime, with crimes down 25% from where they were in 2017.