Shop owner fined for under-age sale.
A Walsall shopkeeper has been fined almost £1,000 after selling lager to a 15 year old during a test purchase operation.
Mohinder Pal, the owner of Jimmy’s Food and Wines on Lichfield Road, Rushall, admitted selling alcohol to a person under 18, in contravention of the Licensing Act 2003.
The test purchase operation was organised by Walsall Trading Standards and is part of an ongoing programme of checks to ensure that licensed premises are upholding their responsibility to protect children from harm.
Shop and bar owners and their staff are personally responsible for checking that the person they sell alcohol to is over the age of 18. Penalties for selling to an under 18 range from a Penalty Notice of £80 up to a maximum fine of £10,000 and six months imprisonment. A venue that repeatedly breaches this law can also face the suspension or revocation of their licence.
Anyone who sells alcohol should make sure that they are completely satisfied that the person in front of them is old enough to buy the product. If you have any doubts, or the customer cannot provide identification, then the only safe opti0n is to refuse to sell.
Further advice on how to discourage and prevent under-age sales can be obtained from Walsall Council Trading Standards.
