Tesco and their alcohol policy!

lufcgirl

On Friday, I went into a branch of Tesco Express with OH to buy some stuff and whilst there we decided to buy some alcohol for the night. By alcohol were talking a bottle of Jacques, a bottle of WKD and four small bottles of Barcadi Breezer (so charv I know before you all start!).

So we get to the till and the assistant manager serves us, and he asks for ID. Fair enough and I gave him my driving license. And then he wanted ID for my OH. Ok...so I'm 25 and my OH is 23, looks about five years older than me and on a visit from Ireland and didn't think to bring their passport out with them. On the basis that OH didn't have ID he refused to serve me, despite me having the cash to pay. So not OH paying and created a fuss.

We challenged this, and he said 'you could be buying alcohol for a minor'. And we were like what the hell! The accent kinda gives it away she's on holiday here with me and wouldn't bring the passport out. So then OH said 'So if she (pointing at me) brought her 12 year old brother in you'd refuse to serve her too on the basis it could be for him' and he said he would! It was absolutely ridiculous, considering that I was paying, it was my ID and he still wouldn't serve me. Wouldn't even let me walk out and back in again and get served.

Rant over! Before you start I don't want compensation, I'm still just very annoyed about the busybody behind the counter.

LondonGirl08

I'm actually banned from my local Somerfield because of this.


Went to get my dad some gin with my OH. I'm 23 he was 26. He didn't even come in the shop but went next door and came to meet me outside. IDed me fine and then they saw me wave at him and started demanding his ID....

He came in kicked up a fuss and I'm now on their wall of shame.

So if a housewife goes shopping with her kids, teenagers perhaps...does that mean she can't buy booze because she MIGHT give it to them. Effing stupid.

Rachel85

I had this issue in Morrisons - nearly got thrown out by security. My husband couldn't buy wine because I was with him and didn't have ID on me. It was the fact that they were so rude about it that bothered me, so I walked out (before I was thrown out) and left them to put back my week's shoppingl.

Meepster

That "busybody" was just following the law. I know that doesn't help, or make you less angry, but still.

Just, for a moment, look at it from their point of view, suppose the person with you WAS under 18. It is illegal to sell alcohol to someone under 18, OR selling to someone who will pass it on to someone under 18 (Proxy purchase). If this is found to have happened, they will more than likely be looking for another job and the store quite possibly a hefty fine.

To answer LondonGirl08's point about what if you are doing your shopping with your kids. Well, it is perfectly legal for a parent to buy alcohol for THEIR children, so you couldn't be stopped from doing this, see this page for more information:

http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/en/ukpgaen_20000030_en_1

Alias_Omega

I think they are right to ask for ID if you dont look older enough. After all, its challenge 21.?

Everyone should carry some form of ID, most people have photocard driving licenses, which i cant see why they cannot carry the plastic bit in your purse / wallet and present it when needed.

If you were stopped on the side of the road by the police, you could be asked to prove who you are. How would you do it then.?

A friend in his X5 (he is 23yrs old) was stopped for a bad numberplate, had no ID on him, so the police went to take a picture of him to upload to the computer to see if he was wanted. He refused, and was told he would be arrested.

Everyone should carry some form of ID

lufcgirl

mwilletts wrote: »

That "busybody" was just following the law. I know that doesn't help, or make you less angry, but still.

Just, for a moment, look at it from their point of view, suppose the person with you WAS under 18. It is illegal to sell alcohol to someone under 18, OR selling to someone who will pass it on to someone under 18 (Proxy purchase). If this is found to have happened, they will more than likely be looking for another job and the store quite possibly a hefty fine.

To answer LondonGirl08's point about what if you are doing your shopping with your kids. Well, it is perfectly legal for a parent to buy alcohol for THEIR children, so you couldn't be stopped from doing this, see this page for more information:

http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/en/ukpgaen_20000030_en_1

A little common sense doesn't go amiss though! Fair enough if I was dressed in hoody and jeans and looked around 18, but I don't. My OH had their card from the Irish teaching council with them, proof theyre a teacher, ever heard of someone under 18 teaching in a comprehensive school as a qualified teacher?! It all comes down to common sense, something I think a lot of people lack.

I'd been in a pub a few minutes earlier and not been asked for ID! At the end of all that and dumping my shopping and walking out, we walked over the road to a Spar shop and were served by a middle aged woman who didn't ask for any ID at all. It's a stupid policy, either the government should make something available that's free and proves your over 18 instead of people having to risk taking a passport out (if they don't hold a driving licence) just to be served with alcohol.

lufcgirl

And as for the point of carrying ID...OH is Irish. Do you propose they carry their passport around with them, along with every person who doesn't own a driving licence? Risk losing it? After all a credit card sized free ID card for everyone would be perfect, just nobody has the sense to bring one in.

DCodd

Alias_Omega wrote: »

I think they are right to ask for ID if you dont look older enough. After all, its challenge 21.?

Everyone should carry some form of ID, most people have photocard driving licenses, which i cant see why they cannot carry the plastic bit in your purse / wallet and present it when needed.

If you were stopped on the side of the road by the police, you could be asked to prove who you are. How would you do it then.?

A friend in his X5 (he is 23yrs old) was stopped for a bad numberplate, had no ID on him, so the police went to take a picture of him to upload to the computer to see if he was wanted. He refused, and was told he would be arrested.

Everyone should carry some form of ID

Please note that your Photocard licence is NOT offical I.D. as I was told most directly by the DVLA.

I'm getting more and more depressed about the attitudes of this Country when it come to alcohol, we and the yanks are so "tough" on underage drinking yet we have the worst alcohol abuse! a large number of French and Italian parents allow there kids to have moderate and usualy watered down alcohol from a very early age and it seems to instil an understanding and respect for alcohol! maybe we should learn from the Countries that sucessfully deal with alcohol??

Esqui

DCodd wrote: »

Please note that your Photocard licence is NOT offical I.D. as I was told most directly by the DVLA.

But it does a good job of proving how old you are. As mentioned above, not only could the store get fined if a cashier sells alcohol to, or for, someone under 18, but the cashier can too. It's understandable they want to be sure...there are many people under 18 who look a lot older than their age would suggest.

My tip: Get Ribena instead

davetrousers

It's a load of bollards isn't it?

I wonder if buying alcopops (WKD, Breezers etc) is more likely to raise suspicions than buying wine (not lambrini) or half decent spirits.

I would invite the shop assistant to use some common sense.

Helix

lufcgirl wrote: »

A little common sense doesn't go amiss though! Fair enough if I was dressed in hoody and jeans and looked around 18, but I don't. My OH had their card from the Irish teaching council with them, proof theyre a teacher, ever heard of someone under 18 teaching in a comprehensive school as a qualified teacher?! It all comes down to common sense, something I think a lot of people lack.

I'd been in a pub a few minutes earlier and not been asked for ID! At the end of all that and dumping my shopping and walking out, we walked over the road to a Spar shop and were served by a middle aged woman who didn't ask for any ID at all. It's a stupid policy, either the government should make something available that's free and proves your over 18 instead of people having to risk taking a passport out (if they don't hold a driving licence) just to be served with alcohol.

Blame the manager at head office not those working in the shop. You say about using common sense but we have to stick to what we are told to do or risk loosing our job. This will be that we have to ID anyone who is purchasing alcohol or is with someone purchasing alcohol that looks under 21/25 (depending on the policy) and that we can only accept UK Passports, UK Driving Licenses or ID Cards with the PASS Hologram. The reason only those IDs are accepted is so that we know what they are meant to look like and can spot if a fake one is being produced. If they started accepted any number of different types of ID, fake ones would get through.

Blame the government or the shops for not bringing out another form of ID that is easy to get and doesn't cost anything rather than calling the people working the shop who are just doing there job and trying not to risk loosing it a busybody.