To be baffled by Morrison's ID policy

[Babyfacemortified]

I am really at a loss to understand what I have just experienced. Very minor in the scheme of things but I have been left with a lingering uncomfortable feeling.

I made an unplanned stop at my local Morrison's store for a bottle of wine and didn't have my purse with me, just my bank card. So I didn't have any ID with me but I am 33 years old and was dressed for work in business wear so it never crossed my mind that I would be asked for it, even with challenge 25 as I am 8 years over that but to my amazement, I was asked. In many ways, very flattering. This isn't the part that annoyed and bewildered me....

I previously worked in that store for 5 years (starting 16 years ago) and am still on good terms with many of the staff, including management. It's a small town so I still chat to my former colleagues when I see them and keep in touch on Facebook. I didn't have ID, so was refused the sale. This is fine as for whatever reason, the checkout assistant was not confident that I was old enough to buu alcohol.

I asked whether a different member of staff on another checkout could serve me as they would know for a certain fact that I am old enough but was told rhat no, that is not possible and the assistant refused to let me take the wine to another checkout or call a supervisor.

The people behind me in the queue were really nice, as they could obviously tell I am clearly well over 18 (and 25, unfortunately) but I still felt really embarrassed not to mention disappointed at having to leave the lovely Malbec I had been looking forward to!

On the way out, I spotted a supervisor I used to work with and explained the issue to her, told her I realised it was totally my own fault for not having ID but I really did fancy a glass of wine and had a friend coming the following day so could do with something in to offer, so could she aerve me on her checkout but she also refused. She said that although she knew my age, it would be against the law for her to serve me now that her colleague had questioned my age!

Surely this is madness? I absolutely respect the right of the first checkout assistant to refuse if she isn't satisfied that I am old enough, as the consequences of serving someone under 18 can be very serious, but if another checkout assistant and supervisor knew that I was in my 30s they can't be prohibited from serving alcohol can they?

Name changed as very outing.

Trendy you're missing the point...

Those that ask people that they think may be 25 why are you asking for Id?
The law is 18 not 25 so if you look at a 20 something woman who looks 20 something why ask her ? does she look 17 or younger If yes ask for her id if she looks her age 20 something then no . There is a lot of confusion and silly store policy regarding checking people's age the law is 18 always is always will be so this silly asking 40 50 year old people for Id is unnecessary.
And to those that just say carry Id fair enough but not everyone has a drivers license and why should you carry your passport to go to Morrisons on the off chance some jobsworth will ask you for Id even though you are in your 30's .
It's madness the people saying well it's not worth a fine and prosecution, how can you be fined for selling alcohol to a 30 odd year old woman .
If you look under 18 then fair point my 21 year old daughter always takes her id she doesn't look 21 she looks 14 some days so fair enough but if she's still bring asked in 20 years time then thats just insane because come on you can judge a 40 years old doesn't look under 18 .

Those that ask people that they think may be 25 why are you asking for Id?
Because it's objective. I may think someone looks 22, you may think they look 26. You may be behind 'someone' in the queue while I'm serving and think I'm ridiculous asking for ID. Or, you may be serving and I may be behind 'someone' in the queue. I think 'someone' looks 22 and you have a challenge 25 poster, and I'm a licensing officer, or police officer, or trading standards, or mystery shopper. Let's say I'm a licensing officer, I don't believe you have stuck to the challenge 25 policy, because my perception is different to yours. My perception however, outweighs yours. I speak to your manager and look at the challenge logs - your name only appears twice, so with the evidence I have, I can conclude that you aren't implementing the challenge policy that is a mandatory condition of the license granted to sell alcohol and I then place sanctions on the license, one of which is that cashier isn't allowed to sell alcohol, another is a higher age verification is to be used. The actual age of 'someone' is 26, however neither you nor I know this because 'someone' wasn't asked to prove it.

The law is 18 not 25 so if you look at a 20 something woman who looks 20 something why ask her ? does she look 17 or younger If yes ask for her id if she looks her age 20 something then no.
But what are the exact parameters for looking 17? Or 21? Or 25? I will say this again an age verification policy is a mandatory licence condition in order to get and keep a license it must be in place and used

There is a lot of confusion and silly store policy regarding checking people's age the law is 18 always is always will be so this silly asking 40 50 year old people for Id is unnecessary.
Yes, I agree that in essence, it is unesesary. However it becomes necessary when you need challenges for the log to prove you're using the challenge policy that is a mandatory licence condition and your customer base is between 30 and 60.
And to those that just say carry Id fair enough but not everyone has a drivers license and why should you carry your passport to go to Morrisons on the off chance some jobsworth will ask you for Id even though you are in your 30's.
Why call someone a jobsworth for sticking to the policy of the company that employs them and can unemploy them for not following said policy? Are you another one that doesn't like being told no by people you think are beneath you?
It's madness the people saying well it's not worth a fine and prosecution, how can you be fined for selling alcohol to a 30 odd year old woman.
You can't (unless they're already drunk) but you can be warned for not using the challenge scheme by your employer because it is a mandatory licence condition to have said scheme and prove it's used. I doubt the employer wants to lose or have sanctions imposed on the license. So they sack the weak link. who doesn't ID any more because she gets called thick, an idiot and a jobsworth for doing so
If you look under 18 then fair point my 21 year old daughter always takes her id she doesn't look 21 she looks 14 some days so fair enough but if she's still bring asked in 20 years time then thats just insane because come on you can judge a 40 years old doesn't look under 18.
Yes I can, but I need to show I'm following the challenge policy which is a mandatory licence condition

I don't want to be responsible for other people's drinking and shitty decisions. The fact is the law makes me so, companies nor individuals have any control over the terms set to get and keep a license. Some company policies are heavy handed - I've worked for them, and they are ridiculous, but I had to stick to them or face disciplinary action. Unfortunately some companies view their staff with the same contempt as some customers do. There's no trust in the staff judgement, because the stakes are too high for the company to lose an alcohol license.

I may think someone looks 22, you may think they look 26.
Fair point but under 18 no so why ask as the law is 18 .

an age verification policy is a mandatory licence condition in order to get and keep a license it must be in place and us
It's not though is it , if it was then every single person would be asked for Id and only people that they think are under 25 are asked or should be asked .
Are you another one that doesn't like being told no by people you think are beneath you?
Actually no your wrong there I have a drivers license with me I'm also in my 40s so unlikely but some of these posts suggest possible . If I forget to bring I'd walk out and take my business elsewhere as that not me being not like to be told no but I can choose to purchase where I like from. I've been a adult for many years I shouldn't need to prove that . If every single shop or bar I went to ask for Id then maybe I look younger but I don't .
Why would you ask someone who you think is in her 40s him or her for Id just to prove you are following your mandatory guidelines?
You a completely missing the point regardless of your guidelines the law is 18 so to ask a 40 year old for Id is not necessary I can't believe a 40 year old may look under 18 a 20 year old yes .

It's not though is it , if it was then every single person would be asked for Id and only people that they think are under 25 are asked or should be asked.

I think you'll find it is actually.

www.gov.uk/guidance/alcohol-licensing#mandatory-licensing-conditions

That is a link to mandatory licencing conditions, here's the relevant bit -

The remaining mandatory conditions are set out in the Licensing Act 2003 (Mandatory Licensing Conditions) (Amendment) Order 2014:

a ban on irresponsible promotions
mandatory provision of free potable (drinking) water

adoption of an age verification policy

the mandatory provision of smaller measures

Challenge 21 and 25 are best practice.

Why would you ask someone who you think is in her 40s him or her for Id just to prove you are following your mandatory guidelines?
So I don't face a disciplinary? Lose my job? I have to show I'm using the policy, if my boss tells me I don't ID enough people then I start IDing people. If the only people who come to me to get served are 40+ then I ID them, because when I'm hauled in for not IDing enough people "But they were all well over 25" is not a defence for breaking the policy because I can't prove it.
You a completely missing the point regardless of your guidelines the law is 18 so to ask a 40 year old for Id is not necessary I can't believe a 40 year old may look under 18 a 20 year old yes

I'm not missing any point. I have a personal alcohol license, I'm very well aware that the legal age is 18, I'm also very well aware of what the mandatory conditions for an alcohol license entail because I have applied for one, and have had those conditions checked - which included checking the logs I held behind the bar to prove we were IDing people.

I think you are missing the point that while you won't get prosecuted for serving someone under 25 but above 18, if you adopt challenge 25, from the licensing authority pov, to do so regularly, or to not prove you are using the policy casts doubt on the suitability of you holding the license.

"The law is 18 not 25 so if you look at a 20 something woman who looks 20 something why ask her ?"

Because the policy is Think 25 and not Think 18.

I do feel sorry for the till staff but to be fair, I've never been challenged. I often shop with my DSs both before age 18 and after (DS1) and still never been challenged. Ds1 is 18 and will regularly pop in and pick up a couple of beers or ciders and has never been challenged, not even when he has his 17 year old brother with him. Same in the pub if it's just those two, they've gone with a friend of DS1s who is older than him by almost a year and they all got challenged, well he asked their ages and DS1 said 18 and had his ID, his friend said 19 but had no ID so had a coke, DS2 just asked for a coke as he wasn't going to lie and had no ID anyway. We often eat in there and boys get served a beer or cider with us which is fine as they are over 16.

So are retail staff saying that there is effectively a quota for ID checks and it's not about how old you look but how many ID checks you have made that day and if you don't do enough you will be disciplined, even if everyone who comes in is clearly over, I don't know, 40?

Ok if you work for a retailer HQ PLEASE get this sorted. It is utterly stupid both for customers and staff. Get out of your ivory towers.

mandatory licence condition
So this mandatory licence do you ask everyone or a select few ? Do you need to ask so many in a day to prove that you ask ?
It's not clear , this needs to be made clear that regular random checks are done regardless that you are 25 or 55 .
If that's the case people would be more understanding as it seems if a 60 year old is asked for Id your like course I'm at least 25 but if it was made clear that you do spot checks then fair enough.

What fairweathercyclist and ifyouneedmenow said - what's really interesting here is that it's taken more than 200 posts for the situation to be properly explained. Retailers are making random checks in order to demonstrate their suitability to hold an alcohol licence.
I can understand that irl retailers might not want to make this clear to their customers, although it would be helpful to their staff if they did, but why on Earth were so many people on this thread, with no apparent agenda, so reluctant to admit that this is what's happening? Why not say it on page one? It's bizarre.

One evening after I’d been to the gym, I was giving a friend a lift home but first was popping into Aldi to grab a couple of bits. Me and my friend are both in our 30s.

My friend decided to come into the shop with me rather than sit in the car. I had some food bits and a bottle of wine. At checkout I was asked for ID, which I quite like given I’m 32! However, she then asked my friend for ID. She didn’t have her purse on her, and I explained to the operator this was my purchase not hers. The check out operator refused to serve me because my friend (who is 30) didn’t have ID on her. I asked if I could then come back in the shop without my friend so I could have my wine but was told no.

Absolutely ridiculous!

I was refused a glass of wine in a local restaurant - on the grounds that my DS was with me who had no ID on him and there should not be even the possibility that he had access to alcohol. DS (19) had no ID on him, he asked for a Coke and did not even want any alcoholic drink. That’s as bizarre as it gets.

I went to my local Morrison’s a few yrs ago, bought wine for myself & also a bottle of red wine for my dad as he had helped out with my son on a hospital visit, but because I was with my then 15 yr old DD I was refused a sale as she couldn’t produce valid ID to prove she was over 18 even though I was buying the actual wine (and other shopping) I told the cashier not a problem & just walked out leaving the shopping at the till, went to my local co-op instead & got what I needed there no fuss!

Morrisons are fucking ludicrous about ID. I got id'd in there when I was 39...

Totally agree with PP about Morrisons being fucking ridiculous with ID.

I go into the same Morrisons, at the same time, every Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. I have been doing this for weeks now. I pick up a small can of the zero sugar monster as its tasty and beats a sugary creamy coffee.

Every. Fucking. Morning. The SAME woman ID's me. I am in my late 20s, getting ID'd, three times a week, for a fucking energy juice.

Argh!!

it is the law ..once challenged you have to prove. just make sure next time you have ID and the lovely malbec will go home with you.

Uggghhh! I've had this problem! 30yrs old - husband, 5yr old son and baby in the baby seat - full weeks worth of shopping and they wouldn't let us have the (MUCH NEEDED) bottle of wine on a Saturday afternoon. My husband had ID but bc I was paying; they still wouldn't let us have it. Furious and stupid doesn't even cover it.

On the flip side tho I've also worked in retail and know it's sometimes very difficult to tell if a person is over 18.

We ended up packing the car up, I waited with the kids while hubby went back in for the wine. Innconvinient I suppose but there are worse things to stress about in life! 🤷‍♀️

This happened to me at Christmas time with Brandy sauce, we were on our way to a dinner party and our job was to bring the pud. I'm 29 with hubby and our 4 year old son, hubby had ID but they still refused the sale. Still annoyed about that brandy sauce now haha

Morrison’s is very serious about challenge 25. This is reminding me of Christmas a few years back, I had taken my Nan Christmas shopping at Morrison’s. I was 19/20 and to be fair probably looked young.

She had done her whole shop and picked up a specialist gift set of whisky for her neighbour who helped her out a lot in her garden for his Christmas present.

Anyway we got to the checkout and it was painfully obvious it was my Nans shop and I was just assisting her. Once she reached the alcohol she asked me for my ID, and at this point I realised I’d left it at home in my night out bag from the weekend. I explained this and told the lady at the checkout I understand it’s challenge 25 but it’s not for me it’s a gift and I’m only helping my nan. She refused to serve us the alcohol gift set which is totally her right, but what made me laugh was she went, ‘how do I know you’re not going to get out of here and go on a bender drinking this whiskey.’ At this point the man behind us goes ‘surely she would have picked a bottle of vodka for a bender, not 5 mini bottles of whiskey and a decorative glass.’

My Nan was fuming and went back through a different checkout about 5 minutes later 😂. She would always refuse to go shopping with me after that as my baby face caused her ‘too much drama’.

The way it works is that, even if you know that someone is over 25 (having asked for ID before, being a friend of the person etc), then you must ask for ID. So you have a situation like an online supermarket driver having to ID a regular customer every single time they deliver to that person if they look to be under 25.

I'm 40 and this happened to me in December! Hadn't been I.d.'d for about 3 years prior! There's no way I look under 18! I said it's ridiculous and the cashier got a colleague who said it's fine (they'd served me alcohol loads of times previously!) So not sure why your ex colleague who knew you couldn't serve you!!

I was asked for ID in Asda. The woman on checkout refused to serve me even though I explained I was 40. I don’t drive, so I obviously don’t have a driving license. Being a non-driver also means that I had spent 45 minutes on the bus to get to Asda. I was really unhappy, I had made a special trip to the supermarket to buy whiskey for a birthday present. The supervisor came over, but she said it was up to the person serving and she still refused to serve me, so I refused to buy the rest of the shopping I had picked up! The supervisor followed me and told me to try again at the self service tills, so I did get my shopping in the end. I had to go round the shop again to get everything, so it was far from hassle free. The woman on the till must have been in early fifties and I thought she would have the sense to realise I was clearly over 25.

I think you'll find the phrase is lose their job. Jesus Christ. The standard of English on this post is ridiculous. Seriously go back to school!!! 😡

OP you said it was your fault for not carrying ID. It’s so not. You shouldn’t have to, you are 33. It say challenge 25. I’d have complained but I suppose that’s my personality type. You were buying a Malbec ffs, hardly the teen drink of choice!

I was refused a glass of wine in a local restaurant - on the grounds that my DS was with me who had no ID on him and there should not be even the possibility that he had access to alcohol. DS (19) had no ID on him, he asked for a Coke and did not even want any alcoholic drink. That’s as bizarre as it gets.

It's even more bizarre since it's not illegal for anyone over the age of 18 to buy anyone over the age of 16 an alcoholic drink in licensed premises when having a meal