Security guards in supermarkets: what are they licensed to do?

[TonyMammoth]

Does anyone know what security guard licensing entails? I was in Tesco earlier today. A man walked out without paying for things he'd just taken from the shelves.

Another man asked the security guard at the door why he didn't challenge the guy. He said he wasn't allowed to because of human rights. The man asked what about his human right not to have to pay rising prices to absorb theft? The security man said he'd lose his job if he challenged it.

So what exactly is the point of a security guard who can't do their job?

Sounds like he was lazy i have seen security guards ask to see in bags or to."come with them".

They are allowed to challenge, they are not allowed to have any physical contact.

Your post reads goady or maybe you are "researching " something I can't decide which.

Yes this they can't wrestle people to the ground or anything.

The security man in our local Lidl had his head kicked by 2 women when he challenged them about 4 bottles of vodka they were stealing. He tried to get them back and was pushed back and tripped over a shopping basket on the floor.
Other customers intervened to stop the assault. Can’t blame the man in Tesco tbf.

Security man in Milton Keynes near me was stabbed to death doing their job...so cant blame them either!

I wondered this. They can't force anyone to open their bags or go with them either or stop them coming back another day to do the same so what's the point? And some get attacked which is awful.

If they're manning the freezer section, they're licensed to chill ❄️

I think they are supposed to.be a deterrent, also a witness if the police have to come.

I think they are there to act as a detterent over anything else.

They can ask them to return what they haven’t paid for (often more trouble than it’s worth). They can follow them to get a car registration and report them to the police (depending on how much they’ve stolen) and they can forward the details to a manager to get them banned from the store. They can ask to search bags, but only with consent. They can detain someone until the police arrive (but it’s a citizen’s arrest, they have no more legal powers to detain than anyone else does) and they can use reasonable force in self defense, as can anyone else.

In our Sainsbury’s the Security Guard takes note of the offenders, they often recognise them. They call the police, check the CCTV, identify what has been stolen. They give statements to police and give them CCTV. The police go round to the offender’s house and arrest them, sometimes several days later. No need for anyone to put themselves in danger. They get apprehended just not immediately.

He’s probably being paid minimum wage.

Is it really worth the risk of being assaulted?

While I don't blame anyone for not wanting to put themselves in harm's way to stop shoplifting (as enraging as it is), it does seem completely pointless to pay for a security guard to be there if they won't even try to stop obvious theft. Might as well just save the money or hire more people to work the tills or stock the shelves.

Our local M&S security guard does intervene and grab suspects, I've seen it a couple of times. I think he's an ex Ghurka, they don't mess around.

Brave people, to challenge those women.

In our local little asda stores they stack shelves 🤣 but the Tesco extra by me I've noticed have changed all of their security and the new ones are just like ornaments at the pod. My ex used to work In there years ago and security back then were big burly men, they all went to the gym and they even had security on the staff entrance checking the staff, they used to press a button to leave and they would get searched. Now the staff just use the main entrance.
The store is by a graveyard and I regularly see the cages they use to alarm the alcohol bottles over the graveyard and I hear the alarms going off when the thieves are over there with the bottles. So obviously the security aren't doing that good a job. Shoplifting is going on now in plain sight and no one can stop it. The whole country is in a mess.

Sainsbury’s like a pp said seem to basically work intel.

Tesco well chocolate fire guards come to mind.

Asda normally too busy chatting with the decoy.

Morrisons will chase you.

Iceland will waddle over to the door going no please don’t take that comeeee backkkkk

Farmfoods no security but 9/10 a customer will tackle them and then sit on them till the police come (was fun to watch)

I was stopped on the way out of Asda. The security guard went through all my shopping, checking it against my receipt. I felt humiliated as it was done in full view of everyone.

https://dcsgrp.co.uk/what-can-uk-security-guards-legally-do-rights-limits/

I'm researching nothing and have written a post about an incident I saw today, simple as that so don't waste your time deciding. What's wrong with you?

It looks like this man I saw wasn't doing what he should be, then, but in some ways you can't blame them. But it seems a bit pointless unless they're there as a deterrent or similar, but that doesn't work.