Loss Prevention and investigations using POS applications

Many Loss Prevention departments find the benefits of using POS monitoring applications on a daily basis. Activities of dishonest employees take place while working on the register and while utilizing much of the data, Loss Prevention can do their job.

In this example, I’ll use exception based reporting systems. Tied into a company’s Point of Sale system, exception reports provide employers with valuable information by identifying employee trends. Price check, price inquires or price verifies are one of the most common methods dishonest employees will use to try and fool the ever watchful manager.

A part time employee under the age of 25 ringing on the register has a couple of friends bring up some beer and liquor. To the manager, the employee appears to scan the merchandise correctly. The manager assumes all is well and moves to his next task. What the manager didn’t see was the dishonest employee pressed the price check button on the register. The customer hands the employee cash and are on his way out of the building.

Loss Prevention runs the exception reports as part of their everyday tasks. Several transactions are found on this employee where the price check button is used. The Loss Prevention Investigator digs deeper and finds transactions where the price check button was used to purchase beer and liquor. The loss prevention investigator reviews the available CCTV footage of the transaction date and time. After review, the loss prevention investigator finds the employee never actually scanned the merchandise as a regular transaction, only scanning under the price check button. The Loss Prevention Investigator arranges for the interview/interrogation of the employee and the losses are stopped. Continuous monitoring via exception based reporting systems by loss prevention will help deter future occurrences. The issues found are used by the store management as training and coaching opportunity.

For more information visit us at loss prevention or call 1.770.426.0547