Shoplifting 2019: Low risk, high reward

According to the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention (NASP), about 27 million people — 10% of the U.S. population — steal more than $13 billion worth of goods from retailers every year.

That’s about $35 million per day.

With 10 million people caught shoplifting in the last five years, that means one in every 11 persons in the U.S. will steal something from a store at some point in their lives. With only one of every 48 of them apprehended — and only half of those are ever prosecuted — it’s no wonder why shoplifters view their illegal industry as “low risk, high reward.”

Some companies regard shoplifting losses as a “cost of doing business,” merely passing along its extra expenses to the consumer in the form of higher prices. But most retailers resist that route, each for their own reasons. So do small businesses who, to remain competitive or simply stay in business, fear the risk of raising their prices.

Shoplifting appeals to men and women equally. About 25% of them are underage. Of the 75% who are adults, most say they started shoplifting in their teens.

In 29 states, the felony threshold for shoplifting/larceny is $1,000 or more. In states where it’s less than that (like $950 in California), shoplifting cases are a misdemeanor, which means less police involvement and minimal punishment, if any at all.

As a result, in recent years shoplifters have become more brazen with their escalating vocal abuse and threats of physical behavior during theft attempts. The people most at risk are store employees and customers, according to Mark Doyle, producer of The Annual Retail Survey.

Every year, all the numbers prove retail theft gets worse with no end in sight, Doyle says. In eight of the last 10 years, the number of shoplifters and dishonest employees has increased, and so has the amounts of money recovered from those arrested.

Now, according to Organized Retail Crime (ORC), the nation’s ever-expanding drug crisis has created a desperate need for cash by users. They, too, become shoplifters.