Closing the Self-Checkout Loss Gap

Self-checkout now handles the majority of transactions in the stores that offer it, and accounts for 28.5% of all retail loss, up from under 10% in 2018. Most of that loss is not deliberate. It is a barcode that did not scan, an item left in the bottom of a basket, or a produce code entered incorrectly.  

The established countermeasures — exit gates, weight scales, item limits, more staff at the lane —  can work to some degree, but each moves the cost somewhere else. 

This guide for loss prevention and store operations leaders covers:  

• Where self-checkout loss actually comes from, sized by frequency and by cost per incident.  
• How the established countermeasures compare on evidence, and what each one costs in friction.  
• What to look for when evaluating camera-based detection, including the questions that separate item-level vision AI from biometric identification.