MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Shoplifting by affluent shoppers hit the recession soars in the UK

In twelve months to June shoplifting shot up by a fifth

United Kingdom affluent shoppers hit by the recession are fuelling a shoplifting crime-wave, according to research. Middle-class people reluctant to give up luxuries they can no longer afford are behind thefts of expensive foods, alcohol and cosmetics, the Centre for Retail Research data claimed.

Hundreds of retailers said shoplifting surged as goods were taken for personal use and not for resale by organised criminal gangs.

Shoplifting shot up by a fifth in the 12 months to June, leaving shops to pick up a £4.88 billion bill for lost stock.

The data was compiled from 42,000 shops across Europe by the Centre for Retail Research on behalf of Checkpoint Systems, a retail security company.

Britain registered the highest rate of shoplifting in Europe and only the United States and Japan had higher levels worldwide.

Neil Matthews, of Checkpoint Systems, said: “We are seeing more instances of amateur thieves stealing goods for their own personal use rather than to sell on than before. This is epitomised in the recent uprising of the middle-class shoplifter, someone who has turned to theft to sustain their standard of living.

”This is driving theft of items such as cosmetics, perfumes and face creams, alcohol, fresh meat, mobile phones, computer games and DVDs as well as small electrical goods like cameras, iPods and personal care gadgets.”

Researchers questioned 1,069 large retailers with combined sales of £514 billion for the survey. (Centre for Retail Research)