Middle classes 'fuel rise in thefts'

Desperate mothers and white-collar professionals wanting to keep up appearances have emerged as the recession's big shoplifters in New Zealand and Australia, a survey shows.

The annual Global Retail Theft Barometer shows that thefts - both by retailers' own employees and their customers - are up 5.6 per cent on last year and total $3.5 billion between the two countries.

Mark Gentle, managing director of Checkpoint Systems which sponsored the survey, said yesterday that the results were startling.

"That's a significant jump, because for the two years prior we were reporting a reduction - and that's been attributed to the global financial crisis," he said.

"All of a sudden, not having disposable cash is a new experience for people ... and I think we're seeing some of those results in the survey."

Grocery items such as fresh meats and luxury cooked meats such as salami were being stolen more this year - as was clothing and baby formula.

Clothing had the greatest theft rate of any item, which was alarming because it wasn't a daily purchase, Mr Gentle said.

"That's increased dramatically, which indicates to me that people are still ensuring that they're wearing the latest high-end fashion outfit."

Baby formula thefts were equally of concern, Mr Gentle said.

"People stealing baby formula are stealing baby formula for one reason only - they have a need to support their family."

Cosmetics also featured heavily in the most stolen items, as did items from DIY hardware stores, beauty products like razor blades, and electronic games. Many of the items were stolen for resale.

Criminologist Dennis Challinger, an honorary fellow at the University of Melbourne, said there was evidence that crime rose as economic conditions worsened.

"There are indications that crime is now a much more important issue for retailers than two or three years ago when many thieves were opportunistic youngsters.

Now we are seeing mothers, white-collar professionals, and older generations stealing from shops, and organised thieves are becoming more prevalent.