An Edinburgh newsagent has been fined £800 for selling tobacco to an underage shopper working during a test purchase by the local council. I can see this getting tougher.
An Edinburgh newsagent has been fined £800 for selling tobacco to an underage shopper working during a test purchase by the local council. I can see this getting tougher.
And it should.
Although sometimes it’s easy to get muddled subtracting back to determine the time elapsed since the DOB on ID. The downside.
Regretably we have been caught recently for a casual staff member selling cigarettes to minors and it was a sting by the local council.
My advice as the proprietor to all Newsagents who own their own business is to ensure that you have signed proof from all staff that you have informed the staff of the circumstances surrounding sale of cigarettes to minors and that it is reaffirmed every six months. The format of the written proof they sign should be obtained from your local council – Health department and is quite specific.
It covers you against court action but more so,gives you peace of mind that you have endeavoured to do the right thing.
It is not a pleasant feeling when a staff member is caught believe me.
Y&G,
It is a good idea to have a card for staff at athe register stating that the DOB should be on or before “todays date” / 20XX.
My understanding is that (at least in NSW) if a retailer can prove that a staff member was properly trained in the sale of tobacco and that the retailer done everything that could reasonably be expected of them to prevent the sale then they cannot be fined.
Good POS software will also protect both the retailer and employee by prompting the sales person when a tobacco product is scanned – asking them if the customer is of age and including the min DOB as a reference.
y&g
that is a great idea. when ever tobacco products are sold a prompt with todays date less 18 years.
i like it.,
peter
Yep, I like that. We have one after a fashion stuck inconspicuously on the side of the cabinet – I just have to remember to refer to, and update it. hee.
With staff, it would be a given – necessary on so many levels.
Hi Mark, Interesting that you have pick up this story. In the contact that I have had with Trading Standards in West Sussex and other parts of the UK they all tell me that their ‘test purchase’ operations are not done on a random basis. They target store that have a history of complaints from the public and while they have a team in place they will also check other stores.
The level of fines are moving up as this case demonstrates, I suspect that the shop in question has been caught before.
One of the things we were looking for last year when we installed a new EPoS system was a best practice age restricted product challenge tool when a product is scanned. Our SparPos system provides this. Does your Tower system?
Steve
Steve,
We have been canvassing various options for proper handling of tobacco sales in a way that protects retailers in the eyes of the various jurisdictions under which we operate. The next update will ask about customer age and remove tobacco product where it is not verified to the satisfaction of the owner.
On a side note the software option can also assist retailers for age-restricted products such as blades (craft knives in newsagencies) and spray paint (if you carry it).
Oh, and its interesting that the maximum fine in the UK is much lower than here (in NSW) where the maximum penalty is $11,000 for an individual for a first offence ($55,000 for a second or subsequent offence) and $55,000 for a corporation for a first offence ($110,000 for a second or subsequent offence).
Also interesting that that only the retailer was fined in the UK. Here both the retailer and employee can be fined.
It will also work with spray paint andd other materials which can be used for tagging.
G`day Mark,
I don`t think you should invest to much time or effort on upgrading pos software purely for cigarette purposes as from what i understand cigarettes will not be available to general retailers in the near future anyway.
Cheers
Al
Allan, The age check facility will work with adult magazines, lottery products and tobacco products. We face many rules in retail so it makes sense to help protect those who could be prosecuted.