To leave my £80 of shopping for the checkout assistant to put away

[mummytopebs]

Was in supermarket doing my shopping got to the till, had £80 worth of shopping in this was 4 cans of john smiths for dh. The drink was at the end of the shopping so everything had gone through, the checkout lady asked for id (I am 29 but do look young but not that young and god its 4 cans of beer with a full shop not some chavvy drink) I said i did not have any on me but i used to work in the said supermarket so said can you call my old manager who will verify my age. She tutted at me and called the line manager who i used to work for, she said yes she is definitly over age it was 6 years when i worked there and i was definitly over 18 then. The jobsworth sorry checkout lady still looked at me distastefully and the manager said it is up to the checkout lady though cos she originally akked for the id. I said can i have it then and she looked at me and went nah !!!!!!!! I said are you joking and hse said no i dont think you are over age!!!!!! So i said well i'll leave it then and she said ok and put the beer down and said thats £80.71p and i said no i will leave the lot - grabbed my dd and flounced out of the shop with an air of triumph.

I dont care if i had been shopping for an hour, i used to work in that supermarket and know she will have to put it all away ha ha ha

ramalama not store manager necessarily but staff might so they're friends can buy alcohol when under-age.

We have huge problems with under age and binge drinking in the UK so challenge 25 was introduced. this link hopefully explains it

If you look under 25 you will be asked for ID if you cannot produce it you will not be served. I would take it as a compliment.

The law states that once you have been challenged if you cannot produce valid ID the sale will be refused someone else vouching for you is not the same as a valid form of ID and that defence for serving someone after requesting ID will not stand up in a court of law.

'The current guidelines are to challenge anyone who appears to be under 25 or who appears to be buying alcohol for consumption by someone with them who appears to be under 25.'

So according to that, I can't buy a bottle of wine in with a weekly shop if my teenage ds is with me? How can a checkout person judge that I 'appear to be buying alcohol for consumption by someone with (me) who appears to be under 25.'? It will end up like the US and Canada with separate liquor stores.

mummyhill makes a good argument.

Trikken...it was the store manager in this instance..the op used to work there..and probably expected that the op would be served.

And OMG..I know there's a different thread but Yasmina has just won the Apprentice...would have had my money on Kate

scaryteacher, I think most wouldnt have a problem unless they saw you ds pick out the alcohol and hand it to you, but its common sense on the cashiers part really.

Store managers can lie too, the cashier didnt know, they were right to refuse.

Would the fact that the customer was actually 29 stand up in a court of law? I don't think it would need to would it...it wouldn't get that far

not the point ramalama.

erm...yes it is

i like the "jobsworth" she had the clout and just said "nah".

not budging in the face of calling the manager
impervious to "i used to work here"
she tuts and gives dirty looks but wont shift manager or not
still wont serve the alcohol

come on the wee wuman

haha she has some brass neck

PS.curious.have a hissy fit and boast about it

no it isnt. she didnt have id to prove her age. not the cashiers fault the op looks young for her age.

No it does not make a good argument. I live in Belgium where as far as I can see there is not a problem with alcohol and teens the same way as there is in the UK. Restricting something that can be legally obtained makes it more desirable (look at Prohibition in the US), so the kids want it more.

The problem is the culture surrounding alcohol in the UK, not the availability of alcohol. It is down to how families introduce their kids to alcohol. Mine (13) is allowed wine and water if he wants it if we are having a glass with a meal - he doesn't like the taste, and would rather drink apple juice or squash.

I applaud you. She was just being difficult. Her tough luck.

the cashier got it right.no id no sale.her call

cashier didnt go home after an hour wasted and empty handed did she

i am finding this quite funny,esp calling over the manger to vouch for age.smacks of do you know who i am

But nope cashier having none of it

she is definitley a feisty burd

yup

fwiw her manager should have refused to comment, merely saying to the assistant that she should just apply challenge 25. the manager probably didn't want to embarrass the customer seeings as she said she used to work there...a few years ago.

IMHO its just not worth losing your job over. just be flattered and next time bring id.

dont expect special different treatment because you used to work there

same rules apply to everyone.
no id no sale

I don't think the op was expecting special treatment as such...just for the assistant not to be a twat

Mummytopebs - I would probably have done the same tbh

Scottishmummy - I am interested to know what you would have done in this situation

as a customer i'd have had id with me.

as an assistant i'd have applied challenge 25.

as a manager i'd have told the assistant to apply challenge 25.

oh, and as a personal license holder, i'd have made sure all my staff knew how to apply challenge 25.

ffs, the OP is 29! How can she possibly look underage to buy 4 cans of beer (ie under 18)? Who in their right mind carries ID at the age of 29 just because they want to buy beer? It's completely insane.

I was recently challenged by a cashier in Somerfield as I was about to buy a small box of matches. I was 40. Really, a little common sense wouldn't go amiss in this country from time to time.

Originally I kind of thought YANBU.

Then I read other people explaining the legal situation.

On a practical note, perhaps it would be wise if all of us, when buying alcohol, put it on the conveyor belt first, then you will know straightaway if there is going to be a potential issue (or better still send your dh to the offie when dcs are in bed)

my point is having worked in store,OP knows the rules.no id no sale

not ohh ahhh there is my good mate Whatishername she will vouch for me.
i used to work here doncha know.

isnt that trying to bypass the rules,and exert pressure upon cashier to give in.

i'm 29. i know i could look under 25 to some people. to avoid wasting my time i carry id if i'm buying alcohol.

people who are 17 often look 21 or 22. so by having a set rule of asking for id for anyone looking under 25 you're going to catch more underage purchasers than just looking for under 18s.