You might be interested in CCTV for your business, but will it actually improve safety?
CCTV as Crime Deterrence
We all act different on camera, and a CCTV Camera is no different. If your business works with goods which are vulnerable to theft then a CCTV system can deter grazing and even potentially organised crime.
The College of Policing rates CCTV as having a "very strong" effect on crime and that "overall evidence suggests [CCTV] has reduced crime and reoffending".
Big businesses are aware of the effect that "being watched" has on potential criminals, with many supermarkets highlighting the fact at the self-serve checkout when they show you the footage of your face being recorded. The feeling of your actions being watched is a powerful one and to those who might be tempted to steal, it can make all the difference in the world.
Evidence in Court
Let's say someone doesn't care about the CCTV watching them and they still commit theft, another powerful benefit of having CCTV installed in your business is video footage's power in a court of law. High-definition video footage can conclusively say who was doing what when the criminal activity occurred.
This doesn't only apply to criminal activity, but also to workplace accidents that land in court if an accident is caused due to staff negligence.
Grazing
"Grazing" might conjure images of green fields filled with cows munching on grass, however, in this instance, it means something entirely different.
"Grazing" in a loss prevention setting is when employees use or consume part or whole of a product. (A typical case is an employee pinching a chocolate bar). For large-scale operations, grazing of some kind is inevitable, but that doesn't mean it's hopeless to fight it.
A proper loss prevention strategy aims to bring grazing to an absolute minimum, and a key part of that strategy is overt CCTV reminding the employee that a sneaky snickers won't go unnoticed.
Much like theft preventative CCTV in supermarkets, anti-grazing CCTV is extremely overt and 'loud' in its placement, communicating to a prospective thief that they're being watched.
Health and Safety
For exactly the same reason that CCTV deters thefts, it also deters a lot of the malpractice that can lead to a Health and Safety hazard.
The top types of (non-fatal) accidents and injuries that happen at work are
| Slips, Trips and Falls on the same level | 33% |
| Handling, Lifting or Carrying | 18% |
| Struck by Moving Object | 10% |
| Acts of Violence | 8% |
| Falls from Height | 8% |
Source: HSE
Excluding Acts of Violence, most of these accidents are avoidable if a task force is properly trained and follows the procedure. (Please note: we aren't implying that all workplace accidents are due to negligence of the person who was injured).
People are less likely to ignore company procedures when they know they are being watched. Likewise, people are less likely to commit insurance fraud when a camera is watching them (because it's far less likely to work).
Training Purposes
We've all seen those horror videos of warehouse racking being bumped and then cascading in a domino-like fashion. They can stick into people's heads and give a real tangible reason to operate equipment safely.
Although something as shocking as that probably hasn't happened in your business, every business has footage that can be beneficial to show to both managers and new staff, an accident that happened, a common problem to look out for, etc.
CCTV is seen as a bare minimum is a business setting now so don't be left behind.