LCQ License For Sale & Supply Of Alcohol Act - Signage, Requirements, And Liabilities

Signage Requirements for Different Types of Licenses

Discuss about the LCQ License for Sale &Supply of Alcohol Act.
 

As per Section 56 of Sale &Supply of Alcohol Act, signage required for each license type:

• The License– On the main entrance.
• Duty manager’s name– Should be prominently displayed.
• Hours of operation– Must be visible from outside the premises.
• Host Responsibility provisions- including promotion of safe drinking environment
• Designation of areas– Must be displayed prominently all over the premises.
• Other signs as per the conditions of licensesuch as food, transport, low and non-alcoholic beverages that must be displayed prominently all over the premises.
• Prohibited person’s signagesuch as for minors and intoxicated persons which include “no ID no entry” or “no ID no service” at all the selling points (Legislation.govt.nz, 2012).

Signage for On & off licenses- related to hours of operation.

Signage for On & Club licenses - related to transport options & food availability

Signage for on, off, club licenses - related to license, manager on duty, designation of areas, prohibited persons

However, the signage requirements for Special licenses differ on the basis of types of licenses applied for as well as its conditions.

OFF licence needs to provide free water at a place where alcohol is being supplied free as a sample.

In case of ON licence free drinking water should be available to customers at water stations. Also, bottles should be provided on tables. The customer should have ready access to information regarding safe transport options.

Range of food and non or low alcoholic beverages to be available

Section 51 states that the holder of an on-license or club license must ensure that, at all times the premises are open for the sale and supply of alcohol at reasonable prices along with a reasonable range of non-alcoholic drinks.

Section 52 states that the holder of an on-license or club license must ensure sale and consumption on the premises alcohol containing not more than 2.5% ethanol by volume at 20°C.

Section 53 states that the holder of an on-license or club license must ensure that, during the period premises are open for sale and supply of alcohol, a reasonable range of food and non-alcoholic beverages should also be made available for sale and consumption on the premises in portions suitable for a single customer at reasonable price (Alcohol.org.nz, 2012). 

A total of 2 notices are required to be provided in the newspaper and the notification in a public newspaper is essential to provide the public an opportunity to object to the application, in which;

• The first notice must be published within 20 working daysof the application provided.
• The second notice must be published between 5 and 10 days after the first notice.
• An A4 copy of the notice is also to be clearly displayed at the premises within 10 working days. 

A license to sell and supply alcohol does not necessitate a person to serve alcohol to anyone at all times, though, one may wish to refuse service on the basis of the behavior of the individual, level of their intoxication or on suspicion regarding the age of the customers. It is the right of a person as a Manager to refuse the services but it should be kept in mind that the rights of all the people remain protected. There must not be breach of the Humans Rights Act, which protects the rights of every person against discrimination on the basis of sex, marital status, religion, color, race, nationality, physical appearance, age, employment status, family status, and sexual orientation.

Requirements for On-License and Club License Holders

In order to remove a prohibited person from licensed premises, the manager should do following things:

• Verbally communicate the reason behind their removal.
• Use of confident body language and do not get violent or aggressive.
• Involve security personnel if required.
• Contact the Police if required mainly in the case of minors and false ID.
• Issuing a trespass notice if required.
• Record all details in the incident book or log book.

The only acceptable forms of ID are the New Zealand driver’s license, current passport, and HNZ 18+ card. In order to check the evidence of age documents in order to ensure no sale or supply of alcohol to a person under the age of 18, it is essential to be on the safer side always and ID anyone who looks under 25.  

Scenario 1 - Licensee or manager, who sells or supplies alcohol to the person under the age of purchase, is committing an offense under Section 239 (1) of the act. The liability of conviction of licensee under Section 239 (3) is a fine of maximum $10,000 and the suspension of the licensee’s license for maximum 7 days. The liability of the manager in this case will be a fine of maximum $10,000. The staff members will be held liable under Section 239 (2) for sale or supply to underage person and will be liable for conviction to a fine of less than $2,000 under Section 239 (4).

Scenario 2- The licensee is committing an offence under Section 237 (1) for doing irresponsible promotion for carrying on business. The licensee is promoting the alcohol by reducing its price to less than 25% below at which the alcohol is being sold. The liability of convection of the licensee as well as manager will be a fine of maximum $10,000 as well as the suspension of the licensee’s license for a period of maximum 7 days (Alcohol Healthwatch, 2013).

Scenario 3- The licensee is committing an offence under Section 258 (1) because of his/her failure, without any rational excuse in ensuring that Section 214 is complied with, which states that a manager must always be on duty at the time of sake or supply of alcohol in the licensed premises.

Section 258 (2) held the licensee liable on conviction to a fine of maximum $5,000 for the offense. 

Scenario 4 - The licensee or the manager will be held liable on conviction for allowing people on the licensed premises under Section 256 in breach of Section 255, which states that being on licensed premises after the licensing hours, is an offense. The licensee and the manager will be liable for a fine of maximum $10,000 for the offense (Hospitality New Zealand, 2013). 

Scenario 5 - Under Section 250 of the act, the manager of a licensed premises is committing an offence, if getting intoxicated during the duty hours and will be held liable on conviction under Section 250 (2) for a fine of maximum $4,000. In a similar manner, if the employees or the servers of the licensee or in the licensed premises are found intoxicated during the duty hours are held liable for a fine of maximum $2,000 under Section 251 of the act.

Responsibilities and Liabilities of Licensees, Managers, and Staff Members

The responsibility of duty manager for:

Overcrowding- To ensure not to exceed the maximum number of people allowed in the premises.

Permitted occupancy numbers- Maximum numbers are limited in accordance with the building permit as well as the Building Act along with the associated building code. 

Staff should be well aware about in the Host Responsibility Policy of the premises as well as the practical steps that are required to be taken in case of arising any situations. Secondly, staff should be aware about the specific aspects of the license such as designation of areas that will ensure that nobody breaches its conditions. Thirdly, staff should be well trained regarding the occurrence of emergency situations such as in case of fire, robbery or an accident. So, staff must know all the emergency procedures to be implemented in such situations.

Staff is required to be trained, not only with the skills and knowledge to perform their daily duties but also with the premises operating procedures and should practice effectively before dealing with the prohibited people. The manager should alert other members of staff not to serve the prohibited person, arrange transportation for the customer to get home, calling the police, offer other choices such as food or non-alcoholic beverages, and do not refuse the person to serve because intoxicated people can sometimes be quite demanding and not always understand the word NO when a staff member refuses service. Some support systems that will help the staff members to get through these situations;

• Reliable back up support or buddy system in case a customer becomes aggressive
• In case a staff member has been subject to verbal or physical abuse, ensure that this person can get counseling if difficulties arise.
• Provide positive encouragement to maintain a safe and hospitable environment.
• Call for security as it is always a good backup system in case difficulties arise.
• Availability of first aid kits and staff members trained on first aid to be prepared for cases of injuries.

The journey of alcohol through the body:

• An individual consumes a standard alcohol
• It gets absorbed and start circulating all over the body through bloodstream
• The cardiovascular system of the body circulates the alcohol all around the body
• The central nervous system of the body gets degraded, better known as intoxication
• The alcohol is then metabolized or removed by the liver
• It is possible for a healthy liver to process one standard drink per hour and the remaining accumulates within the blood stream, which causes intoxication.

The NZ Police intoxication assessment tool was developed to help those enforcing the conditions of their license and the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012. The SCAB assessment tool, where 'S' stands for speech, 'C' stands for coordination, 'A' stands for appearance, and 'B' stands for behavior; provides descriptions about the four factors that change on intake of alcohol;

There are three stages that can be monitored, and they are Sober, Influenced, and Intoxicated.

• In case of Sober, the speech of the person remains coherent, stands without support, appears tidy and clear eyes, and behaves sensibly.
• In case of Influenced, the person becomes talkative, sway occasionally, eyes appear bloodshot, and behave relaxing.
• In case of intoxicated person, they speak unintelligible, lurch and sway, appear disheveled, and behave annoying and inappropriate.

In order to slow down the consumption of alcohol of an intoxicated person, the server needs to observe their behavior before and during service and should offer distracting entertainment. To divert their mind, the servers should organize the environment to provide a focus that is not the consuming of alcohol because environmental organization can play a significant role in determining alcohol consumption. Some tips are;

• Availability of tables to put drinks down on
• Games to play such as pool and darts.
• To make the environment comfortable and relaxing
• Dancing activities and dance floor

References

Alcohol Healthwatch. (2013). Key Aspects of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012. Retrieved from ahw.org.nz: https://www.ahw.org.nz/resources/forums/2013/Key%20aspects%20SSA%202012%20forum%20.pdf

Alcohol.org.nz. (2012). Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012. Retrieved from alcohol.org.nz: https://www.alcohol.org.nz/management-laws/nz-alcohol-laws/sale-and-supply-of-alcohol-act-2012

Hospitality New Zealand. (2013). The Sale And Supply Of Alcohol Act – What You Need To Know Now. Hospitality New Zealand.

Legislation.govt.nz. (2012). Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012. Retrieved from legislation.govt.nz: https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2012/0120/69.0/DLM3339333.html#DLM3339758