UK retail footfall falls 2.9% in September as shoppers stay home amid rising bills and Budget fears

From the Newshound archive · first published 9 October 2026 · last updated 10 October 2026.

Shopping centre visits collapsed 3.5% in September — seven times worse than August's 0.5% dip — as inflation, soaring fuel costs and household bill pressures drove shoppers away from the high street in greater numbers than retailers had predicted. The British Retail Consortium's Helen Dickinson warned that businesses are "fighting with one hand tied behind their backs" and called on the Chancellor to scrap a planned business rates rise in the upcoming Autumn Budget. Sensormatic's Andy Sumpter said consumers "cannot attribute this month's performance to the weather" and are instead gripped by broad economic anxiety.

Total UK footfall was down 2.9% year on year in September, sharply worse than August's 1.7% decline.

Shopping centre footfall bore the brunt, plunging 3.5%, while retail parks fell 1.7% and the high street dropped 3%.

Economists warn that the knock-on effects of the Iran war have already eaten into the government's fiscal headroom ahead of the Budget.