Pret hands out body cams to staff amid rise in retail crime

Pret A Manger has dished out body cameras to its staff amid a surge in shoplifting cases and attacks on retail workers in the wake of the pandemic, according to the Telegraph.

The coffee shop chain has reportedly launched a trial of the body-worn cameras in six of its London stores and has put up signs informing customers.

The body cameras would only be worn by senior staff members such as managers and team leaders and would only be turned on in special circumstances.

Additionally, the footage will only be accessed by Pret’s security team.

It comes as the ONS reported that more than 430,000 shoplifting cases were reported in England and Wales last year, the highest record since 2003.

The BRC has also reported that attacks on retailers have increased, with as many as 1,300 cases of violence everyday.

It also stated that £2bn worth of goods could be lost to theft in 2024, double the amount lost in 2023.

Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to tackle crime rates by creating a new standalone offence of assaulting a shop worker.

According to the Telegraph, Pret’s trial began before the far-Right riots and is not linked with them.
Its trial also follows similar initiatives by Lidl, which spent £2bn on body cameras for all its UK staff.

A Pret spokesperson told Retail Sector: “Last month, we started trialling body-worn cameras in a small number of our shops as a new safety measure. These are only being worn by team leaders or managers, and are only turned on in specific circumstances.”