Shoplifting rose by 17 per cent in Hampshire and 42 per cent in Surrey in the year to September 2024, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Retail trade union Usdaw was “deeply concerned” by the police figures, which coincided with a rise in attacks on shop staff.

Usdaw surveyed 4,073 of them last year, with 17 per cent saying they had been assaulted, 45 per cent threatened and 69 per cent verbally abused.

The British Retail Consortium said in 2024 violence and abuse towards shop staff rose 50 per cent to 2,000 incidents per day, shoplifting losses reached a record £2.2 billion in 2023-24, and shop crime had reached record levels despite retailers spending £1.8bn on prevention.

Usdaw general secretary Paddy Lillis said: “The scale of the epidemic of retail crime is laid bare in these shocking police recorded crime statistics and the British Retail Consortium report.”

At a Policing Our Community meeting in Haslemere, Surrey police and crime commissioner Lisa Townsend was criticised for “dismissive” responses to complaints about rising shoplifting, limited policing and cumbersome crime reporting.

Business owner and mayor Cllr Oliver Leach said: “Shoplifting is a big problem in our town, and reporting these crimes is a long and frustrating process. Policing could be more proactive, but since the meeting I’ve noticed a PCSO in the area.”

Stuart Warren, owner of The Ark Stores, said thieves stole £3,000 worth of stock in a fortnight in December.

He added: “The thieves just kept coming back. Luckily they could only access the shed, not the whole shop. It’s disheartening, but I try to stay positive. More officers walking the streets would make a big difference.”

Lucy Page, senior sales assistant at Collingwood Batchellor, said: “One even asked me for an expensive product while stealing from us. I made her empty her bag, and thanks to my report and our CCTV she’s been caught and sentenced. But reporting these crimes is ridiculously time-consuming.”

Surrey Police said: “We’re committed to supporting victims and tackling offenders. Recruitment challenges and high call volumes have affected response times, but we’re working to address this through new technology, continued recruitment and improved operations at our contact centre.”

A woman responsible for 20 local shoplifting offences will be sentenced in Portsmouth Crown Court on February 7.

Rachel Cole, 44, of Warren Close, Bordon, admitted the thefts, and six other crimes, to Portsmouth magistrates on January 10.

Cole stole goods worth several thousand pounds - from Sainsbury’s in Liphook, B&M in Bordon, Tesco in Fleet, and Tesco, Waitrose and Marks & Spencer in Haslemere - between July 4 and December 12 last year.

The British Retail Consortium report named Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary the best at responding to retail crime.

It recorded a 151 per cent increase in action against shoplifters and those committing business crime in the year to November 2024.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight police and crime commissioner Donna Jones said: “I am delighted that the constabulary is leading the way in the fight against retail crime.”