Test purchasing policy
This policy applies to the test purchase of any age restricted product including:
- alcohol
- tobacco
- solvents
- spray paints
- knives
- fireworks
Police or Trading Standards officers conduct test purchases at premises to ensure they comply with the law in respect of age restricted products. These tests are usually undertaken at premises where intelligence indicates that the retailer has either sold age restricted products to a minor, previously sold when tested or they are in a ‘hotspot’ area. However, a randomised test purchase could also be simply a matter of routine.
When a test purchase happens, the police tend to use under-18s who look their age. They are not trying to trick businesses, so basically, when a test purchase happens you should not doubt that the person is underage.
When police intend to carry out a test purchase, they’ll typically inform the licensing authorities in your area, and they’ll work alongside them.
What happens if I fail a test purchase?
A fixed penalty notice may be issued by police or trading standards officers to the person making the sale.
Issue of a notice will contribute towards the offence of persistently selling alcohol to under-18s.
A penalty of £90 may also be issued to a member of staff who sells or attempts to sell alcohol to a person who is drunk.
Once the test purchase is complete, if you failed, the licensing authority will put an action plan in place to work with you to tackle any issues relating to age-restricted sales. An action plan could involve offering guidance, staff training on age restricted products, and advice on how to deal with fake identification or helping staff to challenge 25 at the point of sale.
Alternatively, the licensing authority may review your licence under the licensing act. This may happen because you (the licensee) acknowledge that there’s an issue or because the police or safeguarding child unit have submitted an application to have your licence reviewed. Your local authority could have some options in mind when they submit an application to the licensing authority, and they may suggest that:
- You implement additional licensing conditions, such as refusal logs.
- You remove the designated premises supervisor (the person responsible for alcohol sales).
- The licensing authority suspends your license.
- The licensing authority revokes your license completely. There is an appeals process to the magistrates when this happens.
When you fail a test purchase, it’s likely that you’ll receive another test purchase within three months (or even within a few days or weeks).
