To give an example, if you wanted to buy a home theater system for $1500, you would be paying $105 dollars towards security in your purchase. ($1500 x .07 = $105) If people weren't shoplifting you could be taking home an additional $105 dollars worth of goods. No one likes paying for things they shouldn't have to.
Costs to the Community.
Many people don' t realize that they are paying for shoplifting in their community. People pay taxes for police, courts, judges and other law related positions. With the number of shoplifting crimes in Ontario the communities have to hire more police officers and court employees to handle them. This costs everyone in the community money. One other cost to the community is teenagers always seem to be under suspicion by the stores and made to feel uncomfortable. Teenagers are one of the major groups that shoplift-usually with friends on a dare, looking for excitement, or on impulse. But this makes life harder for other teenagers in stores and malls and can lead to trouble with the police. So it is not uncommon to be followed around in a store even if your just shopping for clothes. This is one thing that teenagers disapprove of. If teenagers wouldn't steal, they wouldn't be under suspicion any more by employees in stores. This would make shopping a lot more enjoyable. .
Costs to the Offender.
Most teenagers don't realize when they are shoplifting the possible costs to themselves when they are caught. Firstly, theft under $5000 can carry a maximum penalty of a $2000 fine and six months in prison. Theft over $5000 is a serious indictable offense, and carries a maximum penalty of ten years in prison. This does not usually happen on the first offense, but the risks are there. When you are caught for shoplifting, you have to suffer the embarrassment of being taken into the custody of the stores security officers. Then they face the embarrassment of when the families are notified about the situation.