Shoplifting offences increased by +5% to 519,381 in the year ending September 2025, alongside a rise in retail and consumer fraud, according to data from the ONS Crime and Justice bulletin.

While overall theft offences fell by -6% over the same period, based on figures compiled using data from the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) and police recorded crime, shoplifting continued to rise, up from 492,660 offences reported in the previous year.

The ONS noted that the latest figures are no longer the highest since current police recording practices began, and remain below the year ending June 2025, when 529,994 shoplifting offences were reported.

Responding to the data, Lucy Whing, Crime Policy Advisor at the British Retail Consortium, said the Government, police and retailers are committed to working together to tackle retail crime, highlighting the upcoming Crime and Policing Bill, which will remove the £200 threshold for “low level” theft.

“Retail theft is a serious issue for retailers across the country. While the causes are manifold, the rise in organised crime is particularly concerning, with gangs systematically targeting one store after another,” said Whing.

She added that the impact of theft extends beyond lost stock and is a key driver for violence and abuse against retail workers.

“[The Crime and Policing Bill] will also introduce a standalone offence for assaulting a retail worker, strengthening sentencing and improving the visibility of violence against retail workers so that police can allocate the necessary resources to tackle this challenge and protect our high streets and colleagues,” she added.

Nathan Peacey, Head of Retail & Consumer at law fim Foot Anstey, said the ONS figures do not capture the full scale of the issue, suggesting the true rate of shoplifting is likely to be significantly higher than recorded:

“Instances of shoplifting will have increased at a greater rate than is reflected in the data because retail crime continues to be systemically underreported, partly because of the time and effort involved, partly because the police do not have the resources to respond to most incidents.”

Peacey also warned that the financial impact of retail crime could be compounded by this year’s Employment Rights Act, which strengthens employers’ legal obligations to prevent customer harassment.

“This adds to the need for a cohesive approach to crime prevention, not just at store level, but more importantly as an issue of public policy. What’s clear from today’s statistics is that we still have a long way to go,” added Peacey.

The ONS data also showed a +22% increase in overall fraud compared with the earliest comparable dataset, covering the year ending March 2017 (CSEW). While levels of bank and credit account fraud in 2025 remained broadly similar, consumer and retail fraud rose by +49% when comparing the two periods. However, the ONS cautioned that a significant proportion of fraud incidents do also go unreported.