Shoplifting reaches record level in Switzerland

Since the coronavirus pandemic, shoplifting has exploded in Switzerland, reports the "NZZ am Sonntag." Police crime statistics are setting new records year after year. In 2024, there were nearly 26,000 cases, compared to 15,600 ten years ago. "The actual number of shoplifting incidents is probably much higher than the officially recorded cases," notes Dagmar Jenni, director of the Swiss Retail Federation, an umbrella association of Swiss retail companies with more than 1,900 members.

According to her, the threshold for shoplifting has dropped in Switzerland. "Self-checkouts and a lack of control and monitoring are the cause. But not only that: thefts are also not systematically reported."

Police reports reveal that thieves can generally be divided into two categories: first, there are those who operate in gangs, a phenomenon that has increased significantly throughout Europe. Often, the criminals come specifically to Switzerland and quickly disappear across the border after their crime. But there are also many opportunistic thieves who simply "forget" to scan their goods.

Major retailers such as Migros, Coop, and Lidl have stepped up their security measures with cameras and anti-theft tags. But this doesn't seem to be deterring thieves. In 2023, retail representatives convened a crisis meeting with cantonal police commanders. They called for better cooperation with the police, as many retailers said they felt inadequately protected. Enhanced and simplified cooperation was agreed upon, according to the Swiss-language Sunday newspaper.

There is no estimate for the loss of revenue suffered by retailers in Switzerland. Assuming a similar situation to that in Germany, shoplifting costs the local retail sector around CHF 635 million a year.