Business Safety and Security

It is important to examine your property for obvious risk factors to make your property safe. Keep in mind that the most secure property is a property that doesn't attract criminals.

A Basic Risk Assessment:

Exterior

• Are the views into and out of your property blocked by signage or other obstacles?

• Are there any hiding spots around your windows or doors?

• Are there any cars parked in poorly observed areas or that are distant from the building?

• Does your property have trespassers?

• Are there weapons of opportunity (i.e. loose rocks or any object that can be picked up and thrown) in your parking lot or close to your windows or doors?

Interior

• Can strangers enter your building without talking to a receptionist or other employee?

• Do employees routinely ignore unescorted strangers beyond the reception area?

Ask Yourself

Has crime occurred on your property within the past year?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, consider taking steps to reduce your risk of crime, as listed below.

Securing Commercial Buildings:

There are several tips you can use to discourage internal trespassing and theft.

Discouraging Criminals

• Make sure that the views into and out of your property are as clear as possible; pay careful attention to landscaping. This will increase witness potential and deter crime.

• Create nighttime surveillance by using interior and exterior lighting to draw witness attention to windows and doors that can be seen from the street or other busy areas.

• Participate in our Operation Provident engraving program to mark your property.

• Have an alarm system.

Managing visitors to your building

• Employees should be encouraged to take note of suspicious activity and/or strangers, and report their suspicions to the police.

• Have visitors sign in at the front. Issue them a visitor badge. Have visitors return to the front to sign out and return the badge.

• Employees should confirm that all strangers have a valid pass.

• Don't leave valuables unattended, in plain sight, or in predictable, unlocked locations.

CPTED is based on the simple theory that a proper design and an effective use of the physical environment can help reduce the number of crimes.

CPTED Strategies

• Keep intruders under observation.

• Decrease crime opportunities.

• Use physical design to increase the perception or reality of natural surveillance.

Who can apply for CPTED?

• Shopping malls/plazas.

• Office buildings/businesses.

• Industrial yards/commercial parks.

• Residential areas.

• Schools.

• Playgrounds.

Residential Security Audits

For residential security CPTED audits, please view the map listing all of our divisions and you can contact the local Community Liaison Officer.

Commercial or Corporate Audits

For commercial or corporate audits, contact Crime Prevention Services.

The most effective way to prevent theft is to remove the opportunity for the crime to take place.

Theft Prevention Tips

• Keep the front windows and doors with a direct view to the sales counter clear.

• Displays in front windows should be low and still allow clear visibility into and out of the shop.

• Consider placing less valuable merchandise in your front window display to prevent smash and grabs.

• Place expensive merchandise behind locked display counters where they are out of reach to customers, or place them close to the cash handling area where your employees are able to keep an eye out.

• Consider switching to shatterproof glass for your upcoming renovations.

• Increase staff levels at peak times to discourage thieves.

Training Your Sales Associates

• Greet everyone when entering your store.

• Make eye contact with customers regularly to suggest that the sales associate will be close by.

• Associates should pay particular attention to people with large coats, shopping bags and oversized purses.

• Have an employee on the floor at all times while customers are in the store; the best defense to shop theft is to provide the best customer service possible.

• Employees should never compromise their own personal safety; in the event of a theft, do not chase after the thief.

Shop Theft Release Report

The risk of robbery increases for businesses that handle cash, operate for extended hours or handle high value merchandise.

Robbery Prevention Tips

• Aim to be a good shop-neighbor and form community partnerships with other retailers, property management and police.

• Provide all staff with robbery prevention training.

• Ensure you have a properly working surveillance system.

• Ensure you have proper lighting inside and outside your premise, and remember to maintain them.

• Reduce the amount of cash on hand by making frequent cash drops.

Using Store Layout

Store layout is critical in reducing crime; a properly formatted store will not only result in increased sales, but reduce theft and loss as well.

• Have low shelving to improve view of customers.
• Place your shelves in a way that allows employees to see between the aisles from the sales counter.
• Remove all excessive window signage or clutter from the sales area and other critical lines of sight.

In the Event of a Robbery

• Try to remain calm.

• Comply with the demands of the robber.

• Tell the robber everything you are going to do before you do it so that they do not aggressively react to your sudden movements.

• Give only what you are asked for.

• Try to note distinct characteristics of the robber, surfaces touched, weapon description and direction they fled.

This program works by identifying a prominent window that strategically overlooks the cash handling area. It then defines and highlights that window by applying the CLEAR ZONE decal. This deters robbers by allowing potential witnesses to see the crime taking place. The CLEAR ZONE decal can be ordered as part of the Robbery Prevention and Survival Kit, for free.

Robbery Prevention and Survival Kit

Protect your business, employees and yourself against the risk of robberies by using Peel Regional Police Robbery Prevention and Survival Kit, for free (only available to Mississauga and Brampton; if your business is outside of the Region of Peel, contact your local police department). Sign up for the CLEAR ZONE program and request a Robbery Kit. The kit includes a number of decals to discourage robbers, and resources to help you in the event that a robbery occurs.

Operation Provident is a program designed to discourage the theft of valuables by letting potential thieves know that all valuables inside are marked with a unique nine-digit number. The number significantly increases the criminal's risk of getting caught with the stolen goods. Once any item is recovered from anywhere in Canada, we can return the stolen property to the owner.

The Peel Regional Police will assign your company an Operation Provident number and keep this on record.

How to Participate

Register

Register online or by calling Crime Prevention Services.

Specify

Have your Operation Provident number permanently marked or engraved on all valuable property. Consider including your company name or logo for newly purchased equipment or electronics. Request the manufacturer or distributor to engrave your number on it as a condition of purchase.

Mark

Mark the rest of your existing equipment or electronics with your number. Use an electronic engraver, rotary tool or permanent etching service. If you want to borrow an engraving tool, please view the map listing to locate and visit your local community station.

Highlight your Work

Highlight the engraved area with highly visible paint to draw extra attention to your number and name.

Post Decals

Peel Regional Police will issue a free stop warning sign and decals to your business. Place these on windows and/or doors in a visible location to deter potential criminals.

For more information on Operation Provident, contact Crime Prevention Services.

Peel Regional Police is pleased to participate in the TRACE™ Program that is endorsed by the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP). Citizens can purchase a TRACE™ pen at a local retailer or online to mark their property. Once registered by the consumer, if any possessions are lost, stolen or recovered use of the TRACE™ markings increase the chances of returning them to the rightful owner.  Peel Regional Police checks all recovered property for TRACE™ pen markings and can use the TRACE™ database to identify the owner.

For more information on how TRACE™ works, visit Trace Identified.

Workplace violence and harassment are serious and potentially costly issues that can affect the safety of every employee and business owner in every sector or occupation.

Workplace Violence

Workplace violence is the exercise, attempt to exercise, or threat to exercise physical force by a person against a worker, in the workplace.

Workplace Violence includes:

• physical assaults
• property damage
• theft
• threats of violence

Workplace Harassment

Workplace harassment means engaging in a course of troublesome comments or conduct against an employee in a workplace, which is known or reasonably known to be unwelcome.

Employer Response 

Bill 168 requires all employers to prepare policies with respect to workplace violence and harassment, to develop consequences for workplace violence and/or harassment, and to develop and maintain programs to implement their policies. Furthermore, when warranted, employers must notify law enforcement and potential victims when a threat or violent event has taken place. All threats and incidents must be recorded on an internal tracking system.

Strategies to Help Employers Manage Risk

• Ensure that effective screening is conducted, including obtaining a thorough work history, criminal records and references from sources other than the ones that have been supplied.

• Implement employee assistance programs as they can provide treatment for emotional, marital, substance abuse and financial issues.

• Education and training are an essential part of any violence prevention program. This training could include Conflict Resolution, Crisis Intervention and Self Defense Training.

• Provide effective communication tips on how to handle workplace disagreements.

P.R.E.P. is the acronym for Police Response Emergency Plan. It is a computer database that provides intelligence information during a major event or critical incident to responding officers. The information consists of contact information, utility information, evacuation sites, electronic floor plans and detailed site plans.

In order to become part of our P.R.E.P. program the following information is required:

• Datasheet - which includes contact information, utility information, and evacuation sites. For a copy of the P.R.E.P. datasheet, please contact the Co-ordinators directly.
• Floor plans - we ask that each facility send us electronic floor plans as this will assist Officers in navigating through your facility.
• Site Plan - we ask that each facility send us an electronic site plan. The site plan is a detailed plan showing the building footprint.

Once we receive the completed datasheet, floor plans and site plan, we will arrange for a site visit to take internal and external photographs of the facility.

Contact information:

Amy MacNeill-Falls #1392c
Emergency Management Co-ordinator
905-453-2121 ext. 3624
Email Emergency Management Co-ordinator

Julie Crispo #456c
Emergency Management Co-ordinator
905-453-2121 ext. 3621
Email Emergency Management Co-ordinator

Active Attackers

An active attacker is a person who may want to hurt or kill people in a small or crowded area.
Although the likelihood of being involved in an active attacker situation is minimal, it is critical that we prepare ourselves to maximize the chance for survival. Active attacker incidents are highly unpredictable, escalate quickly and require quick decision making. Remembering and planning ahead with three important choices to consider: Run, hide, or defend.

RUN - If there is an Accessible Escape Path

• Attempt to escape or evacuate to a safe location.
• Leave your belongings behind.
• Help others escape if possible.
• Prevent others from entering into danger.
• Call 9-1-1 when safe to do so.

HIDE - If Escape or Evacuation is not Possible, Find a Place to Hide

• Lock and barricade the door by any means possible.
• Turn off all lights, cover the windows, and stay out of view.
• Silence your cell phone.
• Spread out if you are in a group and hide behind large objects.
• Your hiding place should provide protection if shots are fired.
• Be extremely quiet and wait for police to come to you.

DEFEND - As a Last Resort, if Confronted by the Attacker

• Commit to an aggressive physical reaction.
• Improvise weapons of opportunity.
• Choose action over fear.
• Stop the threat.

 For more information please contact us by email at runhidedefend@peelpolice.ca