Business crime prevention tips

As an employer, you have a duty to keep the workplace as safe as possible. You also need to know that your staff and customers are honest and safe.

• Think about ways to prevent crime – failure to take good precautions invites crime into business.
• Take action in more than one way – don't rely on one measure to prevent all crimes.
• Involve your staff in your actions.
• Work with others to make sure your efforts have the best effects.

Preventing theft:

• Always check references for new staff.
• Introduce and follow clear policies about employee theft.
• Train staff to spot thieves and to watch out for suspicious behaviour.
• Greet every person who enters the business in a friendly way. This could help to put someone off committing a crime against you or your business.
• Remember that your safety is always more important than your property.
• Make sure all monies coming in and going out are dealt with by different employees.
• Randomly check deliveries, both to your business and to your customers.
• Monitor the petty cash fund.
• Question excessive amounts of voids, credits, or damage claims.
• Never accept photocopies of invoices, delivery notes, etc.
• Investigate unusual occurrences such as missing documents or unexplained absences during the working day.
• Tell your staff to pay only for goods received and remind them not to pay for goods that have not been ordered, even if an invoice is provided.
• Change locks and computer passwords periodically.
• As a last resort, if you do discover theft in your business, consider prosecution - experts believe it works as a strong deterrent to others.