Shoplifting causes supermarket operators to write off several thousands of euros a year but firms would rather take the problem in their stride than resort to searching customers' bags, operators have told The Sunday Times.
Supermarkets are more at risk that other retail operations because hundreds of thousands of items are easily accessible on shelves and practically nothing is security tagged or alarmed.
It is an industry norm for supermarkets locally and overseas to lose one to two per cent of their stock to pilferage - in the UK some stores lost up to five per cent - but some operators told The Sunday Times that the problem has worsened.
Earlier this month, Smart Supermarket of Birkirkara enforced a drastic security policy and ordered check-out staff to inspect customers' bags for stolen items. The policy sparked a wave of indignation among shoppers but highlighted the difficulties operators faced in trying to strike a balance between protecting their business and preserving customer relations.
Mario Said, managing director of Scotts Ltd which operates seven supermarkets around Malta, sympathised with Smart and said the problem was getting worse.
"It is a big problem," Mr Said told The Sunday Times. "My suspicion is that it has worsened since the ban on plastic bags was introduced earlier this year. People are bringing all sorts of bags into the premises now and the situation is becoming more difficult to control. However, I do not believe it is acceptable to inspect all customers' bags. In that way you are tarring everyone with the same brush. We used to have security guards conducting random searches, but shoppers would question why they were picked out. What customers fail to appreciate is that, ultimately, they are paying for shoplifting."
Mr Said pointed out that providing lockers for shoppers to store their bags in until they arrived at the check-out was not feasible. It would be difficult to calculate how many lockers were needed and customers were likely to take the keys away with them to ensure they would find a locker available the next time they visited. He said some shoppers thought little of taking trolleys home for similar reasons. At the Sliema supermarket, over 50 newly introduced long-handled, wheeled baskets had gone missing in a matter of days.
Camera footage provided good evidence but Mr Said emphasised it was impossible to man 30 to 40 cameras at any one time. Theft by staff was easier to identify because a pattern would usually surface. 'Customers' go to greater lengths to steal: Mr Said described how one of his managers caught a woman with four rowdy children aged eight to 14 in tow with two bags filled with stolen goods just a few days ago. She was called into an office and asked to leave the premises "quietly" to avoid a scene being made in front of the children.
Another shoplifter even returned to the store to threaten the check-out girl who identified him in court.
"We have to take it all in our stride," Mr Said shrugged. "But within reasonable limits."
Gala supermarket in Gzira sometimes asks customers to have their handbags sealed.
The official, who did not wish to be named, said the supermarket shared Smart's problem, with empty wrappers and bottles left lying around the premises and expensive health and beauty items going missing.
"We try to minimise the problem and only search suspected thieves' handbags," he said.
"It would take time to search all bags and customers would be annoyed. We have not considered implementing a similar policy to Smart's but we might in an extreme situation."
Other supermarket operators asked not to be identified.
One said staff often caught people shoplifting - mostly students stealing small items for a dare - but stock shrinkage was "well within industry standards".
The operator ruled out implementing a handbag search policy, saying that the onus to provide store security lay with the operator.
"It does not reflect well on matters when the fact that people hiding raw fish in their handbags makes the news but it also shows how far people will go to steal. I understand the retailer but we would never consider implementing such a policy: there are two things you never do to a woman - ask her age or look into her handbag."
A manager at another popular supermarket said security staff circulated the premises to catch thieves in the act, but suspected shoplifters were sometimes allowed to leave the store to avoid awkward situations. Staff would then be asked to be on the look out in case the person returned. The store wrote off around 1.5 per cent of its stock to pilferage but had never searched customers' bags.
Questions about store security policies put to larger supermarkets by e-mail went unanswered, some saying they would rather not comment, others saying they were too busy before the holiday weekend.
Ultimately, bona fide customers who felt uncomfortable with having their handbags inspected were free to choose where to shop if they disagreed with the store policy.
A civil rights lawyer described the issue of handbag inspection as "interesting".
"This is a condition for entry set by the establishment, but it is also an invasion of privacy," she said. "Inspection goes beyond merely sealing a handbag - staff are going through the contents. To my knowledge, this issue has never been tested in court, so it is difficult to say which way it would go. However, consumers could choose to shop at another store if they disagreed with the establishment's policy."
Consumer Affairs Division official Odette Vella agreed. Loyal customers who felt aggrieved by the policy were also at liberty to inform the supermarket that they were taking their custom elsewhere.
"If a number of consumers put their foot down on this matter, it might induce the management to change or abolish this security measure," she said.
Industry sources also pointed out that shoppers who believed personnel had overstepped the mark when inspecting bags were free to report staff members - who should be wearing a name tag - to managers.
Meanwhile, Smart's policy was still in place last week. Rather than dent patronage, the supermarket was teeming with shoppers on Friday afternoon.