Think 25 Alcohol Retailing

Spotty Dog

TBH, I don't know the legalities of this.

As far as I am aware there isn't anything illegal about doing that in this country.

Reply 42

Raindroped

Personally I think if you're old enough to drink you will have I.D and theres no point whinging about having to show it as we all have to anyway.
Shops can get heavy fines for serving someone underage, hence all the precautions. After 3 warnings they can take the shop's alcohol liscence away, and as well as the shop getting fined, so does the cashier.
It's not much to ask to show an I.D, even if you are up to the age of 25.

But that isn't the point. Shops can refuse to serve you now based on the fact that they believe you may supply the alcohol to a minor even if you have ID. This is exactly what happened to me recently and its utterly ridiculous to have to put up with such baseless accusations because you want to buy your dad a bottle of whisky with the weekly shop.

Reply 43

Spotty Dog

OP

15

AJ-24

Nor me

I'm 18, with ID, and no children ... doesn't really affect me :biggrin:

I just felt like contributing :frown:

lol

You contribute away my dear. <3

Reply 44

Spotty Dog

OP

15

The problem is, people moan that there's so much underage drinking; "Oh, someone must be buying it for them." and then they moan when policies like this are put into place.

The retailers are made out to be the bad guys, no matter what the situation.

Reply 45

Hedger

13

That's idiocy. As if they're actually preventing anything...

Reply 46

Spotty Dog

The problem is, people moan that there's so much underage drinking; "Oh, someone must be buying it for them." and then they moan when policies like this are put into place.

The retailers are made out to be the bad guys, no matter what the situation.

personally Id rather live in a society that was positively inundated with underage drinkers than one where we have to deal with this kind of totalitarian crap on a daily basis.

Reply 47

Spotty Dog

The problem is, people moan that there's so much underage drinking; "Oh, someone must be buying it for them." and then they moan when policies like this are put into place.

The retailers are made out to be the bad guys, no matter what the situation.

Well that's because I think we need proper solutions to such social problems not just tightening of supply laws - prohibition and steps toward it don't work and never have.

I don't believe that retailers should be able to accuse customers of criminal intent in order to protect themselves and get away with it, it crosses the line and retailers need to stand up to government and tell them that they need to start coming up with some proper solutions rather than finger pointing - retail has a big lobby on westminster and consumers have a big lobby on retail so it has to work that way.

Reply 48

Alasdair

Spotty Dog

That is ridiculas. :P I won't ID a family together (unless some of them are clearly around the 15/16/17 mark an alcohol that is more likely to be for them is being purchased - Alcopops, lager etc)

That's both stupid and I'm not even sure that's what the law demands. I'm under (I guess possibly misguided) impression that parents are allowed to buy alcohol for their children...

Reply 49

Spotty Dog

OP

15

Erik.

personally Id rather live in a society that was positively inundated with underage drinkers than one where we have to deal with this kind of totalitarian crap on a daily basis.

Ok. So when you're put on an NHS waiting list 3 years long because the rest of it is taken up with 20-somethings who have serious drink-health problems because they've been pissing themselves up since they were 15, you won't moan about it?

Reply 50

Callipygian

2

Quite often i'll buy booze for my boyfriend whose 20 if he has forgotten his ID and the other way around, i've enver been ID'ed as part of a group :s
At work (a pub) ive never IDd anyone.... although to be fair, i know everyone who comes in who looks underage becauseits a small town, and the rest are all regulars.

Reply 51

Spotty Dog

Ok. So when you're put on an NHS waiting list 3 years long because the rest of it is taken up with 20-somethings who have serious drink-health problems because they've been pissing themselves up since they were 15, you won't moan about it?

those people could be better educated on the danger of alcohol, or more severely punished for their underage binge drinking excesses, or any number of things that could impact the level of underage drinking without being detrimental to the lives of the rest of us or eroding our day-to-day freedom from hindrance.

Reply 52

I used to supercilliously sneer at the 'this country is going to the dogs' brigade but upon reading this thread I think the realisation has finally dawned upon me that it's just a lost cause, it's doomed.

I can't wait to move to France. People can say what they like about the French but do you honestly think they would put up with this crap for one single, solitary moment?

Reply 53

Legal_Jim

Erik.

I can't wait to move to France. People can say what they like about the French but do you honestly think they would put up with this crap for one single, solitary moment?

Having lived in France I can tell you that they have their problems too, but you're right they wouldn't adopt this kind of behaviour in France.

Reply 54

staticrhubarb

7

Erik.

something needs to come along and turn the tide massively.

...Boris Johnson? :eek:

Reply 55

staticrhubarb

...Boris Johnson? :eek:

are you suggesting that Boris Johnson should be said tide-turner, or have I just inadvertantly quoted Boris Johnson? :embarasse

Reply 56

mja

10

Alasdair

That's both stupid and I'm not even sure that's what the law demands. I'm under (I guess possibly misguided) impression that parents are allowed to buy alcohol for their children...

Yes, absolutely right. The law is quite clear - it is perfectly legal to supply alcohol to anyone over 5 in private, non-licensed premises. It is absolutely straightforwardly lawful for someone over 18 to purchase alcohol for someone under 18 to consume in such a place.

So when supermarkets refuse to sell a bottle of wine to a mum doing the weekly shop, because she has her ten year old son with her, they are not doing so to comply with any law known to lawyers. They do it out of an over-zealous fear of litigation or prosecution.

If they had any backbone they would sell to the mother, and if trading standards decided to prosecute them, their lawyers would simply demand proof that the mother intended to supply the alcohol to a minor unlawfully (ie not in private) and that they could reasonably have suspected this. Without such proof, there is no case to answer.

But this would mean the supermarkets going to court and defending their and their customers' rights. Much easier just to offend your loyal, law-abiding customers, isn't it?

Reply 57

Legal_Jim

ChemistBoy

I don't believe that retailers should be able to accuse customers of criminal intent in order to protect themselves and get away with it

This might be considered slanderous on the part of a supermarket if they did indeed accuse someone of criminal intent, especially if there were a number of others in earshot at the time.

Incidentally, there's a quick solution to this problem of supermarkets behaving in this overzealous fashion - buy from local shops (it's about time people realised that supermarkets don't give us a good deal). Take away their power (i.e. don't buy things from them).

Reply 58