Being a victim of a robbery is something that no one wants to think about. However, in order to keep yourself and your colleagues safe at the workplace, it’s important to know what to do in the event of a robbery.
But to prevent further problems from happening, it’s essential that you try your best to remain calm and make sound decisions. You need to be in the right frame of mind so that you can attend to matters such as providing first aid, preserving evidence or supporting those who are shaken by the incident. Even something as simple as getting a glass replacement for your storefront requires a clear head.
To help you keep calm after a robbery, we’re going to list five basic things that you need to do after a robbery.
- Check if anyone is hurt and contact the authorities
The first thing you should do is check if anyone has been hurt and provide first aid if necessary. After that, you should contact the authorities.
Now, the immediate reaction for most people would be to call 000. However, it’s important to understand when you should or shouldn’t call emergency services.
If someone is seriously hurt or is in danger, call 000 immediately. However, if the crime has already happened and there’s no urgent need for medical or police assistance, you should contact your local police station instead. This distinction is important as calling 000 when it’s not necessary could take resources away from people who genuinely need urgent medical attention or police assistance.
Once you’ve contacted the police, try your best not to tamper with the scene of the crime unless someone in the scene needs assistance. Preserving the scene will allow the authorities to deduce what exactly happened during the incident. Additionally, it will allow them to collect untampered evidence that could be used later on. This evidence could even help them track down the culprit in the future.
- Check in with your employees and itself store itself
Next, be sure to check in with your colleagues and ask them how they’re feeling. Being a victim of a robbery can be a traumatic experience. Try to be as supportive and understanding as you can with your co-workers, especially immediately after the incident. Try not to place blame on anyone and just make sure that everyone is as calm as possible.
In the coming days or weeks, feelings about the incident will surely still be underneath the surface. It’s important that you do what you can to create a supportive environment for those who are affected by the robbery. In Australia, there are plenty of mental health services available for those who need them. You could suggest one of these services if you feel that it would be helpful for them.
After checking on your colleagues, check the store itself and see if there’s any urgent repairs that need to be done. For example, broken glass can be a security and safety risk. In this case, it’s important that you call a 24-hour repair service to ensure that no one else gets hurt and that your store is protected.
- Ask witnesses to remain at the scene
Besides the evidence, it’s also important to keep to witnesses at the scene. Though they might be shaken, you need to ask coworkers, customers and passersby to remain until the police arrive. Witness reports are necessary in order to get a better picture of what occurred during the incident. Such reports could even help you and the authorities identify the culprit.
If a witness needs to leave the scene, make sure you take their contact details so that the police can contact them later.
- Give information to the authorities
Once the police arrive, you want to be as cooperative as possible. Yes, sometimes it can be tough to talk about such an incident. However, to prevent the incident from happening again and to potentially find the culprit, the authorities need to know everything that happened.
Try your best to recall what the culprit looked like, what time the incident happened, the weapons that they had or what vehicle they used. Additionally, point out anything that could be used as evidence. This could be CCTV footage, shoe prints, broken door handles, broken windows and so on.
- Learn from the incident
Finally, you should use this opportunity to prepare for another possible robbery. Learn as much as you can about the incident in order to keep yourself and your colleagues safe.
Here are a few basic things to remember during a robbery:
- Remain calm and follow the robbers’ orders
- Don’t make a risky attempt at fighting or disarming the robber as this could provoke further violence
- Move slowly to assure the robber that you’re not going to pull out a weapon
- Mentally collect as much information as you can about the robber. Take note of their height, voice, complexion, tattoos, clothing and so on.
If you’re the business owner or the manager, make sure that your employees understand what to do in such a situation. Provide them with clear instructions on what to do in case of a robbery. Knowing what to do might help them stay calm during a robbery.
After an incident, it’s likely that you’re going to forget a couple of important things on this list. That’s okay. The most important thing is to keep a clear head and try your best to keep yourself and others safe. Indeed, the lives and safety of those around you are more important than what’s in the register or on the shelves.