… to think shoplifting is really bad?

When your business is in retail - and your livelihood - imagine how you would feel if your job was, say in an office, and after working hard all month, payroll just decided they weren't going to pay you, or were maybe going to dock 30% of your wages for an unspecified reason, just because they reckoned you could afford to lose it and/or you couldn't prove it, or would be too scared to fight them over it.

That's effectively the same thing as when little scrotes just decide to pick up your merchandise - that you had to pay for - and take it without paying you for it.

It would be more than naive to imagine that would be news to criminals. Its also information freely available in the public domain in published reports.

That wouldn’t be shoplifting, though. And having my kid’s bike stolen certainly wouldn’t make me care about shoplifting. That’s a bit of an odd train of thought.

When I was on mat leave and in boots there was a guy there with a bag I could have fitted into literally emptying the shelves of cosmetics. Not remotely trying to disguise what he was doing just swiping the contents of the shelves into the bag.

The staff were behind the counter out of the way as a member of staff was assaulted the week before when another person was approached about shoplifting. They were concerned about having no stock left. Whilst I was waiting for the prescriptions he left and I stayed in the shop for a few minutes to avoid bumping into him in the street.

It reminds me of the silly old joke about stealing a Samsung phone from a shop being actual theft, but taking an Apple phone only counting as scrumping.

It is strange how people use different words to attach different value judgments and seriousness to effectively the same thing, when it suits their 'ah, it's only a little bit naughty' agenda.

4 hour shift at work today in a supermarket we had 3 attempted trolley walk offs stopped by security on the door ,total value of all 3 trolley loads came to just over one thousand pounds, also had 2 full rescan in scan and go one with £60 un scaned items and 1 with £174 worth of un scaned items ,so i basically spent my shift putting it all back on the shelves

I don't suppose it is a good idea to advertise the best steal to sell stuff to avoid prosecution.

Stealing is wrong. It puts the cost up for all customers.

Well that’s a shame, as we all pay the price for it in more ways than one.

I think calling giving it a word of it's own 'shoplifting' somehow makes it appear less serious than other types of theft. It should just be called theft (or stealing if you'd rather) because that's what it is.

There's been a significant upsurge in low value theft of essentials such as food, nappies etc, particularly amongst women. So much so that there are now initiatives to offer support as an alternative to prosecution. Obviously you won't see that reported in the way you would the regular offenders/career shoplifters, if they don't get to court. But its a huge issue with a number of reports from police and even retail organisations flagging it up.

Of course it’s bad. But until someone enforces the law it will carry on.🤷‍♀️

I completely agree.

It's absolutely scummy to steal.

Although I remember when I was a teenager, one of my friends had addicts for parents and 3 younger siblings. He would regularly steal to feed them. In The end local shop used to bag up food that was going out of date for him and told him just to ask if he really needed anything

I can’t say I blame them to be honest.

I was in a bigger Tescos the other day looking at makeup, and saw that particularly there, they’d put large security cameras up. It’s a bit unsettling but seeing the amount they must lose in stock I don’t blame them.

I’ve regularly seen people scan a full basket through in self checkout supermarkets, pack into bags and then just walk out without paying. The security guards appear to be at the doors though and no one is really around at these checkouts so it is easy for shoplifters.

I even knew of someone a few years ago, middle class, who’d regularly go into expensive clothes shops and take clothes. She said she sold what she didn’t want. She worked and said it was so easy. I distanced myself from her after this as she did it when she was with me once. Just giggled and laughed after it. I was muttering at her to take the clothes back. There are some clothes or other shops if they don’t have security cameras where it looks easy to steal from if they’re by themselves.

Just scum, aren't they?

It's like seagulls acting on instinct, who eye up your chips and swoop to take them - but done by humans who should know much, much better.

Has anyone seen the videos from America where people just go in and clear the shelves? It's quite shocking to see.

A video popped up on Twitter where a thief was in a shop - small family-run store, rather than a big chain - with a large plastic dustbin (I don't know if he'd taken it in with him or found it in the shop) and he was just merrily filling it with hundreds of packets of cigarettes.

The two brothers who owned/ran the shop set about him and beat him very hard and repeatedly with a broom handle, until he staggered off empty-handed and with a frightened, pained look on his face.

I deplore violence and am in no way trying to excuse it (not a fan of cigarettes either), but they must have been desperate just seeing him literally helping himself to their families' livelihoods.

Yes, and stores where normal products, like shampoo and toothpaste, are locked behind glass cabinets.

My MIL works in a high street shop that is really struggling with shoplifting. She said first thing in the morning it's alcoholics, then the drug addicts, then after school you get the ones doing it just to fund a lifestyle. They sell essentials but it's always luxury goods stolen, so not done through need. Literally people openly fill bags with goods and walk out knowing the staff can't do anything, and mum's are getting their kids to steal, especially if under 10. They now wear bodycams due to the aggression shown if they offer these people a basket or to take items to the till for them.
Knowing all this,and our fears for MIL (who is 69 and tiny) I still have a friend who brags about stealing from Tesco and all the scams he's pulled. I've made it clear I find his behaviour disgusting.

I'm not sure I'm 100% happy with it from a personal privacy point of view, but I suppose shoplifting is one of those crimes that will be a thing of the past once all shops introduce the 'full contactless' system - whereby the cameras scan and recognise you as you enter, along with your registered payment method, and then every item that leaves with you will automatically be charged to your account.

Honest customers who aren't concerned about potential personal privacy infringements will no doubt love the fact that they can just take whatever they want to buy and walk straight out with it, rather than having to queue up and wait to pay.

That said, I bet there will be a load of criminals who slip small, expensive goods into unsuspecting customers' bags and coat pockets in the store and then, after they've been charged for them, distract and or mug them to get the items once outside.

Deliberate, organise shoplifting is theft. It’s not a victimless crime. I pity the staff dealing with it.

Teenagers stealing pocket money items for their own use is a different thing.

As a young teen, a friend and I attempted to take a Make up item each from a supermarket. This was in the days when pocket money was £2 a week, and a lipstick or eyeliner cost all that, or maybe double.

We were caught. Told off. My mother called. Never did it again.

My point I was going to make was I think it's really bad, but lots of people have this mentality that the shop can afford to lose it.

Has anyone seen the videos from America where people just go in and clear the shelves? It's quite shocking to see.

When I was late twenties my pal and i went shopping. We paid for a load of clothes and then my friend remembered she'd wanted to get lipstick but couldn't be bothered to queue so just put it into the shopping bag.

I remember her being really blasé about it, saying she'd spent a fortune so no one could care, but I was so scared walking out through the door past the security guard. Of course she wasn't caught, and I have to wonder if it was something she often did.

My son in law works in a large local supermarket and the manager has just lost his job because of the amount of theft over the last 12 months. He said that the most stolen items are clothing from changing rooms, and then meat /alcohol. And because the Police won't even come out unless it's over £200 worth of goods, they know that they can get away with it. Most don't even conceal.

There is never an excuse for it. The costs are felt all the way down to the supplier.