Are Criminals Exploiting Store Policies?
How Retail Policies Are Being Used — and Abused — to Drive Loss

By the D&D Daily staff

Retail loss is often discussed in terms of theft events: items taken, suspects identified and incidents recorded. But an increasing share of retail loss is not tied to a single criminal act at all. Instead, it stems from the exploitation of customer-facing policies that were designed to reduce friction and build loyalty.

Return policies, price-match guarantees, loyalty programs and customer service discretion have become essential competitive tools. At the same time, they have created new opportunities for abuse that are difficult to detect, document and address through traditional loss prevention methods.

This type of loss often appears routine on the surface. A return without a receipt. A price adjustment that falls within policy limits. A refund approved to preserve customer satisfaction. Individually, these transactions rarely raise concern. Collectively, they can represent significant financial exposure.

Common patterns include excessive no-receipt returns, “wardrobing” of apparel returned after use, manipulation of price-match rules using temporary or online-only listings and coordinated loyalty point abuse across multiple locations. In some cases, organized groups share information about which policies are most easily leveraged and which stores apply them most leniently.

Unlike traditional theft, policy exploitation typically involves no confrontation, no force and no obvious violation of store rules. That places frontline employees in a difficult position. Associates are often encouraged to resolve issues quickly and positively, while lacking visibility into a customer’s broader transaction history.

For loss prevention teams, the challenge is twofold. First, this type of activity is harder to classify. It may not meet internal definitions of theft or fraud, even when intent is clearly questionable. Second, it requires data-driven detection rather than incident-based response. Patterns emerge only when transactions are analyzed across time, locations and channels.

Retailers are beginning to respond by refining policy language, introducing limits based on transaction history and improving cross-channel visibility. Some are also investing in analytics tools that help identify abnormal behavior before losses escalate.

As retail environments continue to evolve, loss prevention strategies must adapt with them. Not all loss comes from broken locks or stolen merchandise. Increasingly, it comes from policies that are working exactly as written — just not as intended.


ORCAs Making a Difference
Tennessee Organized Retail Crime Alliance announces Executive Committee & Board of Directors

From TNORCA's LinkedIn page

We are pleased to announce the Tennessee Organized Retail Crime Alliance Executive Committee and Board of Directors for the 2026–2028 term. The Board would like to extend its sincere appreciation to the outgoing 2023–2025 Board of Directors for their dedication and contributions to TNORCA.

We would also like to offer special recognition to outgoing Secretary Tym Conklin, who worked tirelessly behind the scenes for several years prior to TNORCA’s formation as a nonprofit organization and played a critical role in launching the alliance.

For the 2026–2028 term, the Board will consist of seven members, positioning TNORCA to effectively align with its mission and strategic goals over the next two years. We also recognize Karli Province, PhD and Vaughn Brown, who were elected to full terms after having served partial terms during the previous session.

It is with great pleasure that we announce Heather Rawlings, ORC Investigator with Metro One/Lululemon, has been appointed to the Executive Committee and will serve as Secretary.

Looking ahead, we have several exciting initiatives underway, including proposed amendments to TCA 39-14-113, the Tennessee Organized Retail Crime Prevention Act, which are currently progressing through the Tennessee General Assembly. Additionally, we are planning in-person meetings, including one confirmed for June 4 in Nashville at ROCIC (be on the lookout for registration in late April), as well as a meeting in Memphis anticipated for late Q1 or early Q2. Further details will be shared as they become available along with virtual meetings to grow TNORCA engagement.

We look forward to working with our members as we strive to combat ORC and make positive changes in the communities we serve. Thank you for your continued support!  linkedin.com


More States Establish Task Forces to Fight Retail Crime
State and city create task force to prosecute retail crime in Anchorage
Lawyers with the state’s Department of Law are working with prosecutors at the Municipality of Anchorage to more aggressively go after serious shoplifters. Retail theft is the focus of what leaders with the city and state say is a partnership dedicated to “quality of life” crimes in Anchorage.

A memorandum of understanding was signed by Attorney General Stephen Cox and Municipal Attorney Eva Gardner on Jan. 8. It lays out an agreement to improve public safety by establishing a joint task force focused on crimes impacting residents’ quality of life.

Though shoplifting is the current focus, officials say it will be a template applied in the future to other public safety issues. “Our new partnership will focus our collective resources on specific public safety priorities, including retail theft, drug interdiction, domestic violence and sexual assault,” Mayor Suzanne LaFrance said in a written statement emailed last week.

The Alaska Department of Law will supply two prosecutors along with a supervisor, and two lawyers from the municipal prosecutor’s office are attached. The lawyers are supposed to coordinate with one another on serious retail theft cases, along with partners in law enforcement, civil attorneys and other government entities, according to the terms of the memorandum. adn.com


Safest January in NYC History?
NYC Top Cop Says City Had Safest January on Record
NYC top cop says the city recorded its safest January on record, with sharp declines in shootings and homicides across all five boroughs, according to new NYPD data released Monday.

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said homicides fell 60% compared with January 2025, while shooting incidents dropped 20%, reaching the lowest levels ever recorded for the month. The city logged 40 shootings and 47 shooting victims, both new January lows, the department said.

Manhattan and Staten Island went the entire month without a single homicide, while murders declined in every borough citywide. Overall major crime fell nearly 7% compared with a year earlier, driven by significant drops in burglary, robbery and retail theft, according to police statistics.

Burglaries declined nearly 30%, robberies fell about 10%, and retail theft dropped 16%. Tisch credited a more targeted enforcement strategy, particularly against organized shoplifting rings, saying the approach has increased arrests while keeping stores open and accessible. vinnews.com


Crime-Fighting Strategies Working in Dallas
Dallas sees lowest violent crime numbers since 2015 as chief credits new crime strategies
Not only are homicides down 23%, robberies are down 10%, aggravated assaults are down 12% and sexual assaults are down 13%. That results in a 12% overall drop in violent crime.

Another crime-fighting strategy that Comeaux credits for the drop in crime has been identifying and sending more officers to patrol hot spots for illegal activity.

That may have contributed to reductions in both auto thefts and burglaries. cbsnews.com


Seattle police chief addresses recent violence; shares year-end crime data

Survey Finds Violence Widespread Across Texas, Often Missing From Official Crime Data