Shoplifters and Dishonest Employees Continue to Steal, With Case Values Soaring, According to Jack L. Hayes International’s 31st Annual Retail Theft Survey!

WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Over 279,000 shoplifters and dishonest employees were apprehended in
2018 by just 20 large retailers who recovered over $114 million from
these thieves, according to the 31^st Annual Retail Theft
Survey conducted by Jack L. Hayes International, the leading loss
prevention and inventory shrinkage control consulting firm.

“Theft case values soared in 2018 with the average shoplifting case
value ($301.97) increasing 11.8%; the average dishonest employee case
value ($1,361.37) increasing an amazing 30.1%; and the total average
theft case value ($408.77) up 17.0%! While the retailers participating
in this survey did not apprehend as many thieves as they did the
previous year, they were recovering more dollars from the thieves they
did apprehend,” said Mark R. Doyle, President of Jack L. Hayes
International, Inc. Mr. Doyle added, “With the increase in dollar
recoveries, retail theft overall continues to be a serious problem for
retailers negatively impacting their bottom-line, which results in
higher prices to consumers.”

Highlights from this highly anticipated annual theft survey include:

• Participants: 20 large retail companies with 13,674 stores and over
  $330 billion in retail sales (2018).
• Apprehensions: 279,196 shoplifters and dishonest employees were
  apprehended in 2018, down 11.8% from 2017.
• Recovery Dollars: Over $114 million was recovered from apprehended
  shoplifters and dishonest employees in 2018, up 3.2% from 2017.
• Shoplifter Apprehensions: 251,051 shoplifters were apprehended in
  2018, down 11.7% from 2017.
• Shoplifter Recovery Dollars: Over $75 million was recovered from
  apprehended shoplifters in 2018, a decrease of 1.4% from 2017.
• Employee Apprehensions: 28,145 dishonest employees were apprehended in
  2018, down 12.7% from 2017.
• Employee Recovery Dollars: Over $38 million was recovered from
  employee apprehensions in 2018, up 13.5% from 2017.
• Average Case Values: Total Theft: up 17.0%; Shoplifters: up 11.8%;
  Dishonest Employees: up 30.1%
• Shrink: 55.0% of survey participants reported an increase in shrink in
  2018, with 35.0% reporting a decrease in shrink, and another 10.0%
  reported shrink stayed about the same.

Full survey results are available at: http://hayesinternational.com/news/annual-retail-theft-survey/

Contacts

Mark R. Doyle
President
(813) 991-5628
mrd@hayesinternational.com