CRIME PREVENTION FOR RESTAURANTS
11 JULY 2019
They can be attractive targets of criminal activity.
The following information is provided to serve as a frame of reference for the restaurant industry:
- Eating and drinking establishments comprise the largest segment of the retail industry.
- One out of three adults eats in a restaurant on a typical day.
- Over nine million people are employed in the food service industry in the United States.
- One out of four retail business locations is an eating and/or drinking establishment.
Restaurant Risks and Vulnerabilities
- Armed Robberies
- Armed robberies offer a great opportunity for injury or death.
- Current and former employees and their friends are of ten involved.
- The most vulnerable times for an armed robbery are during opening and closing periods.
- Cash in the restaurant should be kept to a minimum.
- No one, either hourly employee or manager, should be allowed to be alone in the restaurant.
- Employees should enter and leave utilizing the “buddy system.”
- When opening, one enters and checks for security – related problems.
- The other employee waits outside until they receive an “all clear” signal.
- When closing, one employee should exit the restaurant, proceed to his/her motor vehicle and drive
around the restaurant to look for any security concerns. - If no problems are observed by the first exiting employee, an “all clear” signal should be given before others leave the restaurant under the observation of the first employee.
- If problems occur during either opening or closing procedures, one employee should always be in a position to go for help or call for help