Owned by Kroger, Fred Meyer is a hypermarket that you definitely know well if you live in the Northwest United States.
Offering groceries, electronics, shoes, and all kinds of other goods, it’s only natural that they have a loss prevention policy in place to help prevent employee theft and shoplifting. So, what is the Fred Meyer Shoplifting policy?
Fred Meyer keeps some of their security policies from the public eye, but they do employ surveillance cameras, security tagging, and loss prevention staff who may be dressed in plain clothes to observe and help detain shoplifters. Small, expensive items are often put in overlarge packages, as well, to make them harder to hide.
Today we’ll tell you what we know about their security, including elaborating on the recently unpublished changes to security so that you know why these were not publicly disclosed. If you’re ready, let’s take a look at what we know about the Fred Meyer Shoplifting policy!
Understanding Fred Meyer Security measures
Any time that you’ve got a large store with a diverse number of offerings, a loss prevention strategy is a must. American companies lose an estimated 15-20 billion every year from employee theft and shoplifting alone, and so businesses like Fred Meyer help to balance this with a security policy that can help mitigate losses without overly alarming customers.
Below we’ll detail what we know about Fred Meyer Shoplifting and general security practices so that you can see how they help to keep their prices low, while also deterring potential shoplifters.
Indoor and outdoor surveillance
We’re used to seeing cameras just about everywhere we go… you’ve even got a high-pixel one on your pocket courtesy of your cellphone!
Like other stores, Fred Meyer uses security cameras that allow for real-time observation and which also save footage in case it needs to be reviewed for further charges or to provide evidence for formal charges.
Fred Meyer does not appear to employ AI-driven strategies or facial recognition, although the amount of time that the cameras are monitored live will depend on each location – the higher the shoplifting risk in an area, the more likely it is that someone will be staffed full-time to keep an eye on shoppers.
Security tagging
Security tagging is another common feature in most retail stores and Fred Meyer is no exception to this rule.
Many items, not just high-end ones, may be tagged at random so that attempting to leave the store without paying for a purchase will set off an alarm.
When this happens, staff will likely be tasked with reviewing previous footage in order to help build a case, and the shoplifter may or may not be stopped and questioned (we’ll tell you more on this shortly—it’s very specific to Fred Meyer so it deserves its own section).
Loss Prevention officers
Loss prevention officers will be present and there could be one or a dozen – it all depends on the store and on rotation schedules.
These officers may be dressed in a recognizable uniform or they might be wearing street clothes, so that they may observe you without your knowledge.
Their goal is to look for signs of shoplifting, such as moving towards a specific item, taking it from the shelf, and moving to hide the item somewhere else out of view for easy retrieval.
In cases like this, you should know that ‘concealing is stealing’ – if it’s not obvious that you’ve just decided not to buy the item and simply put it on the nearest shelf, then you might still be charged, so if you need to return something it’s best to put it where you got it or at least ensure it’s in VERY plain view or you might be charged.
Loss prevention officers will typically observe and will not make contact until you attempt to leave the store with an item that you haven’t paid for.
Exceptions may be made if you have been banned, but there’s no guarantee of that – loss prevention staff may simply contact the police to have them remove you from the store and file trespassing charges as a result.
Oversized packaging
A final security strategy is popular at many stores – oversized packaging. There are many items that you can buy that come in small packages, but which cost a lot, and to reduce the chances that these will be stolen you’ll see oversized packaging on these items.
A good example is a memory card. These are quite tiny, but the packaging for each card will include multiple layers of hard, tight plastic that make a large package, perhaps 8 inches by 4 inches so that you can’t simply pop the small litem in a pocket.
Pressed between the layers there might even be a security tag and just because you see a visible tag on the outside, doesn’t mean that there won’t be another in the package.
Read also >> How Long After Shoplifting Can You Be Caught? (Do This Now!)
Read also >> What To Do If Caught Shoplifting? (All You Need To Know)
Read also >> How Long Does It Take To Get A Civil Demand Letter?
Read also >> Should I Pay A Civil Demand Letter For Shoplifting? (Penalty)
Recent changes in security have not been disclosed publicly
We mentioned that Fred Meyer security has introduced some non-public changes and so we’ll elaborate a little on this to help you understand what happened.
In 2017, a director of corporate affairs for Fred Meyer announced that an internal and undisclosed policy was implemented in regard to shoplifters.
This was likely in response to another incident in 2017 where a loss prevention officer was critically stabbed after following a suspected shoplifter out of a Fred Meyers store in Anchorage, Alaska. At this point, we surmise that a non-confrontation policy was implemented and this is actually not uncommon in large retail stores.
Rather than confronting shoplifters, police are contacted immediately and footage is shared with them so that a case may be built and shoplifters may be prosecuted without putting company employees at risk.
To help mitigate further losses that may occur once shoplifters hear about a policy like this, Fred Meyer also coordinated with local police to host a ‘retail blitz’ event where local officers would, unbeknownst to shoplifters, be present or very close to Fred Meyer locations for quick interventions at seemingly random times.
This was an effective campaign and as it’s quite easy to repeat this strategy, shoplifting statistics for the stores that employed the blitz strategy were better managed even with the non-confrontation strategy that Fred Meyer seems to have implemented.
You may still be charged even if you make it out the door
While loss prevention associates will likely not confront you even after you’ve made it out the door, between strategies like the ‘retail blitz’ and simply observing suspected shoplifters and sending the footage straight to the police, if you shoplift at a Fred Meyer then there is still a large chance that you will be charged, fined, and possibly serve some jail time.
While it’s not the most aggressive strategy, this does help to protect employees and also legitimate customers in the case where a confronted shoplifter might otherwise become dangerous.
Some closing words
Today we’ve explored the Fred Meyer shoplifting policy and while it’s not as proactive as you’ll see at many other stores, that doesn’t mean that it’s ineffective.
‘Retail blitz’ and similar strategies mean that high-risk stores may occasionally be a trap for shoplifters, and with modern surveillance shoplifting footage may be simply emailed or otherwise delivered to the police and the shoplifter will be charged anyway.
The result is a shopping-friendly environment that doesn’t have a ‘draconian’ feel and we have to say as customers that we like it and with a little luck, smart shoplifters will also steer clear of Fred Meyer!