Reports of retail crime up nearly 40 per cent last year, almost 300 incidents every day

The National Party says the Government has no plan to tackle retail crime with reports increasing nearly 40 per cent in one year.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has admitted the issue “escalated” in the past year but said the Government was focused on addressing it.

National Party police spokesman Mark Mitchell on Sunday released figures obtained from the Police Minister showing retail crime had increased by 39 per cent in 2022 compared to 2021.

There were 292 retail crime incidents every day in 2022, up from 140 per day in 2018.

A regional breakdown showed eight out of twelve policing districts reported at least a 100 per cent increase in retail crime incidents since 2018.

Police at the scene of the ram-raid on BNZ Bank in Queenstown. Photo / James Allan

In Canterbury, retail crime was up 53 per cent in 2022, while in Counties Manukau it was up 63 per cent.

“Unlike Labour, National has a plan to restore law and order,” Mitchell said.

“Unless the Government gets serious about fighting crime and cracking down on this offending, criminals will continue to feel like they can operate with impunity, putting Kiwi lives and businesses at risk.”

Hipkins today said the number of ram-raids had decreased but admitted there was still work to do with reducing aggravated robberies.

There was a 400 per cent increase in ram raids in five years, while 76 percent of those being caught were under the age of 18, RNZ reported in July last year at the height of the issue.

“We’ve got quite a lot of investment rolling out in fog cannons and those other preventative measures that we know will make a difference,” Hipkins said.

Hipkins said there were now 1700 more police on the streets, increasing to 1800 by the middle of the year.

“I know the police have been really proactively targeting this area of crime, because no one wants to see businesses experience the level of victimisation.”

The scene of a ram raid burglary at a liquor store in Greenhithe, Auckland last year. Photo / Hayden Woodward

The data shows a large increase in reporting of retail crime through the software Auror.

This programme was introduced in 2015 to make it easier for retail chain stores, supermarkets and petrol stations to report shoplifting and theft to police, particularly for goods less than $500 in value.

In 2017, 15 per cent of retail crime was reported through Auror. This had increased to 65 per cent by 2022.

Police have previously said the increase in reports of retail crime is largely due to better reporting and recording methods.

This followed a 2017 Retail NZ survey that found close to 70 per cent of retail crime was not being reported.

The Police Minister’s response to the National Party stated the increase in reporting, by Auror on behalf of the major major retail chains, supermarkets, and petrol stations, had led to a “significant increase in the retail crime statistics”.

They said most incidents (82 per cent) were in relation to shoplifting with an estimated value under $500, or theft valued at under $500.

“Many of these crimes were not reported to police previously,” the Police Minister’s response said.