Christmas shoppers given bells to deter pickpockets
“We want people to come into the city and feel that they can enjoy themselves and feel safe at the same time,” she added.
The BID is offering more than 4,500 credit card defenders, 5,000 purse-dipping bells to attach and 1,000 cables to clip purses to bags to shoppers for free.
It has teamed up with city centre banks and building societies to give out the digital defenders, which help stop thieves stealing card information.
The items were introduced on Wednesday as part of a crime-prevention day with West Midlands Police, ahead of the start of late-night shopping in the city.
Shoppers were also given advice on staying safe while stores stayed open until 20:00 GMT.
A big wheel and festive market in Broadgate are also driving an increase in visitors.
Shoppers told BBC CWR [1]they welcomed the safety initiative and hoped it would prove a deterrent to criminals.
“We’re no different to any other town or city, that crime… increases around the Christmas period with people pickpocketing,” Ms Glover said.
“[We wanted] to help the shoppers feel a bit safer in the city.”
References
- ^ told BBC CWR (www.bbc.co.uk)