Temperance at Tesco

Man walks into a Tesco, takes a six-pack to the counter and tries to pay. That's where the joke begins. Dominic Zenden, a 45-year-old spiritualist medium, was told by the cashier that he couldn't purchase the beer in case he gave some to his 15-year-old daughter, who was with him. Even after he assured the cashier the Budweiser was for him, she refused to ring it up.

A Tesco spokesperson said:

“We are doing lots of work to try to stop under18s getting alcohol, and one of the biggest problems has become adults buying for people who are underage. If our staff suspect that people are doing so, then we do not serve them. Obviously there is an element of common sense involved in making that judgment. It is not a blanket ban."

It's been a while since I was underage, but as I recall, usually the "adult" buying for under18s tended to be a skinny 19-year-old buying wine coolers for a carload of friends in the packing lot, not a father purchasing the King of Beers to drink at home. I think drinking the watery, flaccid-tasting Budweiser brand in general should be banned, but that doesn't allow me to intercede either.

Underage and binge drinking is a problem. But do we actually have so few ideas about constructive ways to curb it that we'll target parents legally buying alcohol when shopping with their children? It's as silly as prosecuting parents who allow their child a drink at home. This isn't about a retailer taking a stand in a public health issue. It's the same kind of impulse that leads waiters to refuse to serve a glass of wine to a pregnant woman. It's pure busybody-ness.

Comments

[Shannon]

On a similar but not exactly the same point... I work in a DIY store where we sell age restricted products, eg knives, screwdrivers, solvents and spray paints. I understand in this particular case the law was taken a bit to literally, however I can understand the cashier acting as they did.

Somebody said earlier that the £5k penalty surely can't apply to the cashier personally and I can say YES IT DOES.

We get apprentices coming into our store for tools and if, for example, it happens to be a 17 year old wanting to buy a screwdriver for his college course, we are unable to sell it. Its not worth the PERSONAL fine and however ludicrous the laws on this and alcohol may be at times, I can't blame the cashier. Trading standards regularly make spot checks and its just not worth the hassle. You recieve the fine, but also lose your job and may face further criminal prosecution.

I agree that it is a silly situation, but I sympathise with the cashier - in the same way you wouldn't serve someone just for saying they are of legal age, how was she to know he was telling the truth about it being for him? Oh and as for the point about not driving etc so not having ID, any photographic ID is acceptable providing it had your name and DOB, therefore a young person's ID card is just fine.

[Rachel]

which a lot of venues will not accept as it is easy to fake.

i once asked a bouncer, who had asked for me for ID (aged 26) and I did not have my passport with me and my driving licence had been stolen previously, what they would accept other than driving licence or passport. He replied nothing else would do, so I asked what one was supposed to do if one couldn't drive or didn't holiday outside the UK. He replied that they didn't want those sorts of people in the nightclub.

[Gipsy]

For this purpose, there is something called a young person's ID card.

[Sho]

How do you prove your age in the UK if you don't have a driving licence or passport?

[Rhinoskin]

I used to be a checkout manager for morrisons and I once asked a customer who I thought looked under 21 (as per training and company policy) for ID to buy some alcohol. At this point she produced the only ID she had on her, a Police Warrant card.

The law is quite clear tha tit is illegal to sell alcohol to anyone who you suspect will supply it to a minor, but we always needed more evidence than just accompaniment in order to refuse a sale to a parent with a teenage child. If the young person was seen to select the product from the shelf then we would ask the person who selected it for ID. Often conversations would be overheard by another member of staff and this would lead to a request for ID. We would always request ID from all members of a group who were selecting and purchasing together if any of them, in our opinion, were under 21.

It is also an offence for anyon eto sell alcohol to someone who is already "under the influence" whatever this means in practice and how you are meant to know. This can lead to a potentially more volatile and explosive situation.

The law needs some clarification but I would guarantee that there is more to this story than the father is letting on.

The maximum penalty for contravening most licensing laws anr a personal fine for the cashier of upto £5000, a fine for the licensee (usually the store general manager) of upto £20,000 and a company fine of upto £20,000. Add to this the possible loss of the license to sell alcohol and the loss of the job of the cashier and the store manager, the reason for refusals are all to clear.

[Neil]

I was in a Tesco's branch in Sheffield yesterday and saw a mother and child shopping together.

The child was gleefully carrying around a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV in his 11 year old (at a push) hands.

This game is an 18. It involves copious amounts of gratuitous violence, the objectification of women and more swear words than you can shake a stick at. Even the dreaded 'C' word features prominently.

We were in the beer aisle as it happens, and watched as the mother stopped by the wines and started to read several bottles before making her choice. Pity she couldn't find the time to review her child's entertainment choices too.

Now, I'm ot anti GTA IV. Far from it, I bloody love it! But I am 27, and I can tell the difference between what's acceptable in a tongue in cheek video game and what is acceptable in real life. I worry about the impact of these games on young minds though.

And I also get very frustrated by companies such as Tesco's who jump on bandwagons like binge-drinking and come up with stupid, ill-thought out policies that result in situations as outlined above.

Has anyone pointed out that as the guardian of the child, the parent has the right to decide what he deems suitable for his child? Remember, you can drink in restaurants at 16.

It just staggers me that they have decided to act on the alcohol issue - where illegality is questionable - but not the video game one.

Silly me - video games cost £40!

[Sasha]

Something similar happened to me in Co-op. My boyfriend was buying beer and had shown his I.D. (we are both 22) when I walked up and asked him if he'd could pay for my 10p sweets for me as I had no money on me. The cashier refused point blank as she claimed that in buying me sweets he could just as easily be buying me the alcohol (I had no I.D. on me at the time). So, I had to put the sweets back. However, she still let him buy the alcohol! Madness!

[Martin]

Bonkers. I can see the point of this law and Tesco's application of it, EXCEPT when the alcohol is bought by a parent. 14-17's should be allowed alcohol when with their parents, either in shops or pubs. That way they might learn to enjoy alcohol in an adult setting rather than boozing on street corners.

Kids are drinking in their bedrooms before they go out. They are wasted before they hit the town. 30 years ago they would have been in the pub at 15 and acquiring the taste in the presence of adults, trying to act grown up so as not to be thrown out.

It's true, the more repressive it gets, the worse it gets. In the US, where it's even worse, the youngsters are all using drugs. Within Europe, self evidently the more relaxed nations have less of a problem.

Can't blame the check out staff though.

[Mark]

Quite frankly this issue stated here isn't about the worker that is involved, it is about the policy that Tesco enforces.

It is absolutely ridiculous to think that someone would have to place their children in care to buy something that is intoxicating.

The solution that they have placed seams a little too intrusive and just a bodge on a bigger problem that is facing the UK society today.

This all steams down to the government and their absurd ideas, which is just shifting the blame and making someone else (Tesco) look bad.

[Mark]

Quite frankly this issue stated here isn't about the worker that is involved, it is about the policy that Tesco enforces.

It is absolutely ridiculous to think that someone would have to place their children in care to buy something that is intoxicating.

The solution that they have placed seams a little too intrusive and just a bodge on a bigger problem that is facing the UK society today.

This all steams down to the government and their absurd ideas, which is just shifting the blame and making someone else (Tesco) look bad.

[Gipsy]

₤80 a week? Oh my. That is an eye opener.

[Barbara]

Perhaps the article should mention that if the cashier had sold beer to an adult for use by someone underage THE CASHIER would have been legally liable for a fine of £80. I work in a supermarket & thats a weeks wages I'm not risking that for anyone!

[Kim]

Well, the law says it is illegal for an adult to buy alcohol for someone under the age of 18.

Equally, it is illegal to sell alcohol to someone under the age of 18. The maximum penalty is £5k and your licence taken away. (I would seriously doubt that the penalty applies to individual checkout staff - perhaps someone can clarify.)

From my cursory Google, I can't see that it's illegal to sell alcohol to an adult you suspect of intending to pass it on to a child. I mean, how could you possibly know?

Is there anyone who knows what the law actually says?

[supermother]

But I don't think we know yet on this thread exactly what the law says. Do you have to think the alcohol is going to be drunk then and there by the child?

[Virginia]

I think whether the beers were for the daughter or not are anything to do with the cashier. The father was blaits over 18, so what's the issue? It's nothing to do with the cashier if the daughter is drinking or not, it's up to parents to decide, they know the kids and they govern their rules and boundaries. And if the kid rebels, who's a cashier to say so? Ridiculous, underage drinking is fine in moderation and responsibility. Understandably a lot of underage drinkers are idiots, but a lot are also fine with it.

[Bud]

Typical the Tesco monkey, was just upsetting another customer making pathetic statements as she was not able to do the transaction because of lack of training. Tesco is getting worse!!

[Paul]

You want to count yourself lucky...I work in Las Vegas, wouldn't be here if I didn't have to be....but I cannot CANNOT buy cigarettes or alcohol without ID...for pitty sake I'm 40 years of age...I'm going gray, slightly overwieght...the beer keeps me sane and the cigarettes keep me from strangling the idiots I have to work with.....

[Andrew Milner]

The condom notion merits a little more fleshing out. “So what flavour do you fancy, love?” Lucky I don’t reside in UK or my feet wouldn’t touch the ground on the way to the slammer.
Where’s your sense of humour, Infidels?

[Andrew Milner]

The condom notion merits a little more fleshing out. “So what flavour do you fancy, love?” Lucky I don’t reside in UK or my feet wouldn’t touch the ground on the way to the slammer.
Where’s your sense of humour, Infidels?

[tim]

frankly the man should sue tescos for refusing to serve him. we really do have some stupid laws in this country and now tescos does its best for some free advertising. if they truely want to do the right thing then stop selling alcohol ;) somehow i doubt that. tescos is driven by greed and the lack of quality of their own products is disgraceful. my cat wont eat their cat biscuits. their mayonaise is more like yoghurt. none of their own products are fit for consuming.

[RedDevil]

Hey, and another thing...

....what would Tesco do if a grown up tried to buy some condoms in the company of a 10 year old?

Only a thought, like...

[RedDevil]

Thank goodness that Tesco are now my self-appointed moral guardians and deliver me from all alcoholic evils.

Especially as I'm nearly 43.

A shop as the moral arbiter of 'right' and 'wrong'.

Truly, time to vacate the madhouse.

Ta-ra!

[clive]

I assume anyone buying beer for an underage drinker would leave the kid outside while they did it?

[Jennie]

I work for tesco but not all stores have this policy, my store doesn't. Given the choice I'd rather have someone get annoyed at not being able to buy alcohol than the 1000 fine, the trip to court and the criminal record that could follow. This policy is to protect children isn't it better to be safe than sorry?

[Rita Cocking]

I tried to buy a drink for myself and my 23 year old son,but was not permitted to buy one for my son,as he had no id on him.