Tesco has given its delivery drivers DNA testing kits to help police trace abusive customers who spit at them in a bid to clamp down on staff assaults.
Workers have been asked to report any assaults to police and the grocery giant’s security team, and to share DNA evidence with investigators, The Telegraph reported.
The kits were first added to delivery vans during the pandemic, though sources told the title they have been in place for a few years, but had previously gone unreported.
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It comes as retailers grapple with surging rates of shoplifting and aggressive behaviour towards staff in the wake of the pandemic.
In the year leading up to March 2024, a total of shoplifting 443,995 offences were reported by police forces, marking a 30% increase from the 342,428 incidents logged in the previous year
Last year, Tesco began offering every store worker access to a body camera as violent attacks increased. It has also invested in protective screens and digital radios to protect workers, while store staff are understood to have been offered DNA testing kits too.
The Telegraph reported that DNA testing kits have been found to significantly reduce attacks when used by other organisations.
When the London Underground rolled out the kits across stations in 2003, it helped lead to a 75% reduction in spit attacks, with over 400 offenders convicted in the first 10 years of use.
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