South Tyneside ranked 82 worst in England and Wales for shoplifting

The borough has been ranked 82 in a list of worst areas in the country for the drime - with almost three crimes a day are reported to police.

According to new figures, a total of 1,073 crimes were logged of thieves stealing from stores in the area between January and December last year.

This is up from 957 the previous year with areas targeted including areas around Station Road in South Shields, the Asda superstore in Boldon Colliery and the area around Asda on Station Road in Hebburn.

The study was carried by LoveMyVouchers.co.uk using official police data and covers 346 areas.

The figures rank the borough 82 worst in England and Wales when the to the number of shoplifting crimes are compared to the population.

Linda Firth from LoveMyVouchers.co.uk said, “Shoplifting doesn’t just affect the retailers, it also affects consumers as the losses are typically recouped through higher retail prices.

“With such a high portion of the population already struggling to make ends meet, the affect of increasing retail prices to account for the costs of shoplifting could have a significant impact on budgets.”

Overall, the total number of shoplifting incidents in 2016 was up 7.6% from the previous year, with the recorded figure for the period standing at 362,499.

A spokesman for Northumbria Police, said: “We work closely with security staff to offer advice and help prevent any offences.”

For more details on the study visit www.lovemyvouchers.co.uk/2017-shoplifting-study