Protecting your business against crime

Carl Nickson is Managing Director of Crimestoppers Ambassador Eboracum UK Ltd, a York-based support company providing Security, Facilities Management and Community Safety services to clients in North Yorkshire.
 
Here, he gives us some insight into perceptions of business security under lockdown, and some handy tips on how to maintain it as lockdown is gradually lifted.
 

Our latest campaign on #ClosedtoCrime has more information about crimes which affect businesses.

Silent streets - a stark comparison to the once-bustling city centre. Previous noise around alcohol-related anti-social behaviour seems like something from the past. Businesses of all sizes remain targets for criminals as they adapt their methods to ensure they get enough ill-gotten gains to carry on their own “enterprises”.
 
With non-essential retailers and other businesses closed on lockdown, criminals have been forced to adjust their own “business”. The urge or need to adapt depends on their root cause or reasons to commit crime. There are a wide range of reasons such as, for example, money or debt struggles, addictions, or exploitation.

Let’s look at shoplifting, for example. It costs businesses £770 million per year, according to the British Retail Consortium. With retailers closed, criminals will use other methods or opportunities. These include burglary and cyber-crime.
 
Protecting your business against crime should involve a wide-ranging but simple approach. 
 

Create a strong network

Business owners and managers should build a network around them. Creating a communication circle between your business and neighbouring businesses is an effective way of all working together to look after each other’s premises. It provides extra eyes and ears, and you may even forge stronger inter-business relationships, too. 
 

Perception

Keeping your business premises clear, clean, well-maintained and physically secure will help prevent crime and deter criminals. It sounds simple, and it really is. Would-be criminals will look for vulnerabilities when deciding whether to target a particular business, and this decision will often involve chance. What are the chances that someone will see them or become aware of them committing a crime? Businesses need to give the impression either that there is always someone there, or that someone is checking on the premises regularly. 
 
A business that shows it cares about its appearance will help to create that impression, that someone is there looking after it, even in lockdown. Known as the “broken windows theory”, messy or littered areas, including those with buildings that have broken windows, attract low-level anti-social behaviour. This is because there is an impression that nobody will be around to clean up, and that nobody cares.  Low-level issues escalate into damage, graffiti, substance abuse, burglary and so on.
 

What happens after lockdown?

The impacts of lockdown and its side-effects on people’s lives are sadly likely to include an increase in crime. Mass unemployment and other financial restraints as a result of lockdown are likely to result in a surge of consequential crime. Whilst much of this is likely to be of the type that might be seen as low-level in the eyes of the public, the effects on business may be damning. 
 
It is my experience that one of the best tools against physical business crime is customer service. It really does establish security. It can take many forms, such as face-to-face service and friendly visuals, but also an online presence with updates giving the impression that you have been and are still working in the premises during lockdown. This leads the would-be criminal to believe that you are very much still operational and have a presence at your business.  
 
With businesses opening up and implementing “COVID-SECURE” measures, we will be able to take advantage of the consequential crime prevention attributes of these. Staff members controlling queues, public being more aware of their surroundings (and what other people are around them), areas cordoned off or restricted are all very effective methods of crime prevention, whilst also meeting the COVID working safely standards. After all, it is always safer to deter the crime, than it is to catch the thief!
 

Empowering staff

Empower your staff to "own their zone". They'll already have a lot on their plate with COVID concerns; however, when you are open to the public again, give your staff training and workshops to be assertive and confident, whilst at the same time signalling non-aggression.
 
Customer service really does establish security whilst at the same time making your genuine customers feel good.
 
 
Carl served as a Special Constable with North Yorkshire Police for five years prior to launching Eboracum in 2011. An approved & qualified training instructor with two awarding organisations, delivering security, Health & Safety, First Aid and licensing training to the public and to businesses.