Crimes against businesses have often been afforded less priority than crimes committed against individuals and domestic properties. This article describes the development of the Business Crime Direct (BCD), an ambitious service designed to reduce crimes against small businesses throughout Merseyside in the United Kingdom. A figure illustrating the five stages of the BCD’s risk diagnosis cycle is presented, and the BCD’s process of diagnosing crime risk for small businesses is discussed. After engaging businesses through a call center, the BCD uses a predetermined script to diagnosis the vulnerability of a business to crime and then dispenses advice based on this risk assessment. The BCD also provides follow-up support to small businesses in order to make sure that crime prevention measures are implemented. Discussing the implementation process of the BCD program, the articles evaluates the effectiveness of this service, contending that although a full quantitative evaluation has not yet been conducted, the service has evolved so that limited resources are shared by many businesses supporting the development of group schemes. A more sustainable approach for the BCD in the future will be for businesses to work together, sharing resources and efforts, with the BCD there to support these efforts. Notes, references