Is self-scan theft 50% of the problem?

From dramatic basket dashes to sneaky scams at self-checkouts, we may be missing the real story… 

It’s been one of those weeks where you feel like you can’t step outside without bumping into trouble. I popped out to get some treats for Esme, who’s decided she needs gourmet snacks again, and en route saw no fewer than three separate incidents of criminal behaviour. First, someone launched a glass bottle out of a moving car, right across the road in broad daylight.

Then, I drove past the local Tesco petrol station just in time to catch a man sprinting out with a full basket of unpaid-for shopping. Items flying everywhere. He saw me glaring at him, froze in the middle of the road, then bolted. I didn’t see him take the goods, but you know when you just know? That look said it all. As if that wasn’t enough, the very same trip saw a guy on a mountain bike eyeing me up as he entered the retail park. Something about him screamed, “I’m up to something.” But there I was, on a simple mission for dog treats, not in a patrol car… much as I’d like to be.

One day, someone really should give me a siren and a badge.

Thing is, I’m not the only one noticing. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) just released figures showing a reported 55,000 thefts a day, a 50% rise in violent and abusive incidents, and retail losses hitting £2.2 billion in 2024, up from £1.8 billion the year before. Shoplifting alone is up 20%. And while we’re pleased to see the police finally cracking some of the organised theft rings, we’ve been raising the alarm for years.

We talk a lot about the audacious incidents – people climbing over barriers, threatening staff with weapons, making headlines. But the real damage might be happening in silence. Self-scan theft: it’s not dramatic, but it’s everywhere. Across our sites, self-checkouts now account for around 40% of thefts—and it could be higher in certain stores. I wouldn’t be surprised if some retailers found that half of their losses come through the self-scan tills.

And it’s not just necessities or high-value items like meat and make-up. It’s cans of Coke handed to kids that never get scanned, sandwiches stuffed in pockets, and £5 added to a £15 shop with zero guilt. One northern supermarket removed self-checkouts and saw a 20% rise in sales. Let that sink in. It’s the rise of what we’re calling white-collar shoplifting – ‘normal’-looking people who don’t fit the ‘shoplifter’ stereotype. A university lecturer caught stealing £40 of goods he easily could’ve paid for. A man in M&S seen slipping a sandwich into a pocket before noticing they were being watched and deciding to pay after all. It’s not necessity, it’s opportunity.

Our data shows you’re three to four times more likely to catch someone stealing at a self-checkout than on the shop floor. That’s one every three hours, compared to one every 11 hours through traditional methods. These aren’t people running out with full baskets, they’re calmly walking out with a few unpaid items, unnoticed. And while a guy sprinting through traffic with a stolen basket makes for a better story, 10 people stealing £4 each adds up to the same loss.

But it’s far less likely to be seen, let alone stopped.We’ll be sharing more of this data at Retail Risk – On the Move, where we’re talking to retailers about what’s really going on. Because it’s not just about the big moments… It’s the small patterns, the quiet thefts, and the ‘just one item’ mindset that, over time, end up costing businesses millions. So while Scott’s daughter might be chasing gold in karate competitions this week (and she’s got the same determination as her dad, so I wouldn’t bet against her), we’re here chasing a different kind of opponent – one barcode at a time.

And I’ll say it again: someone, please give me a patrol car!