Anti-crime firm’s statistics reveal scale of prolific retail crime scourge
KNOWN repeat offenders entered UK shops almost 300,000 times in the first six months of 2026, according to worrying statistics from retail crime-busting tech firm Facewatch.
Figures from the company’s crime prevention network show 297,433 real-time warnings were issued to retailers between January and June, as prolific offenders were positively identified by its live facial recognition technology. That’s the equivalent to 1,643 times a day, which shows the scale of the problem despite growing police and industry efforts to tackle repeat retail crime.
Each alert gave retailers the opportunity to intervene before theft, abuse or violence could occur or escalate. June became Facewatch’s busiest month on record, with 57,111 warnings, surpassing the previous monthly high set in May of 55,462 alerts. The firm says the numbers reflect both the continued expansion of Facewatch’s network and the persistent activity of repeat offenders.
The company claims its technology, used by more than 125 retailers operating thousands of stores across the UK, has helped deter repeat offending by up to 70% while improving staff safety and morale at a time when there are 1,600 incidents of abuse and violence against shop workers every day, according the British Retail Consortium.
Facewatch recently announced that it is developing its crime management platform so that, from this autumn, police will be instantly alerted when the most serious offenders trigger a live facial recognition match, enabling a faster law enforcement response.
Nick Fisher, chief executive of Facewatch, said: “An alert isn’t a record of a crime that has already happened, it’s a vital opportunity for frontline shop workers to consider a safe response to prevent one. Each alert warns that someone known for previous offending has entered their store, allowing critical time to follow their company procedures, increase vigilance and take steps to help prevent a theft or a violent incident.
“As more retailers adopt this technology, we would naturally expect the number of alerts to grow because more stores are able to identify known offenders. But these figures also reinforce what police and the wider industry is saying, that the same prolific offenders are continuing to target stores time and time again.
“Technology has an increasingly important role to play, not only in preventing crime before it happens but also in helping retailers manage what comes afterwards. That’s why we’re continuing to invest in new capabilities, including a new crime management platform which is designed to simplify how retailers record, manage and progress crime incidents from prevention through to reporting and investigation.”
