Tesco’s Crazy Alcohol Policy
August 12th, 2008 by Frank
The other day in Tesco several Spanish people were buying some groceries, including a can of Pear Cider. When asked for ID the girl to the fore of the group produced her Spanish national ID card, which was refused as valid ID. In order to purchase alcohol at Tesco one must have a Garda National Age Card or a passport.
Seeing as how one doesn’t need a passport to travel within the EU, many French, Spanish, Polish and other European folk living or visiting here don’t have one, they have their national ID cards, and they don’t have a Garda National Age card.
In fact, a member of staff in tesco told me that they had heard of the Gardai telling people they were too old to get the Age Card.
So anyway, the Spanish ID card not being the right kind of ID, two other members of the group produced Passports, however the group were still denied their one can of Pear Cider because apparently it is the law that if someone tries to purchase alcohol with the wrong kind of ID, another person cannot then purchase that alcohol.
A member of tesco’s staff further explained that the individuals with passports would not be served alcohol if they came back to the store on their own. When asked within what timeframe, they replied ‘probably the rest of the day’.
Now, I understand where these well intentioned rules are coming from, but when put into practise it’s completely crazy.
It seems that the Tesco store policy is as a result of a deal they struck with the Gardai in order to be allowed to sell alcohol.
I don’t know much about alcohol laws, but it seems insane to me that this was a deal that was haggled out with the Gardai. Surely there must be some standard laws in place which would cover supermarket licences?
A member of Tesco staff admitted that this policy is a pain in the ass for Tesco as they constantly have to deal with both foreign nationals and students who are old enough to buy alcohol but don’t have the correct id with them.
It results in a certain amount of loss of sales as people who are refused alcohol often abandon the rest of their groceries too and leave to purchase elswhere.
I couldn’t find much information about store policies online, so I sent an email to customer.services@tesco.ie on the 04/08/08. No answer yet.
I summed up my email by saying:
- I would like to confirm that EU Country’s National ID Cards are
not valid ID’s for purchase of Alcohol at Tesco. - If this is true, I would like to lodge an official complaint that
EU Country’s National ID Cards are not valid ID’s for purchase of
Alcohol at Tesco. - I would like to enquire as to how this policy might be changed -
ie what can the consumer do to push for it to be ammended. -
I would like to understand more about why Tesco has a different
policy to other Off Licences.
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August 12th, 2008 at 9:27 am
I’ve seen the same thing happen at Tesco Frank, a bit embarassing really and another example of nanny-statism and staff stupidity that they can’t or won’t recognise EU identity cards. I’ve given up going to Tesco-it’s an awful place. Quinnsworth should never have sold out, anyone over 5 could buy Yellow Pack booze there back in the good old days. Looking forward to Dunnes opening again in Patrick’s Street, they’re Irish and the quality is definitely better. Fair play with the email, tell us how you get on.
August 12th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
I like Tescos I must say!
This sounds like a case of the letter of the law, rather than the spirit, being enforced.
One point though, while people don’t need passports to travel within the EU, you do need your passport as valid ID for your airline now so most people would have theirs.
August 12th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
are you sure about that Eoin? I didn’t think that was a general airline policy, I know some airlines now stipulate it for security, at this end, but do they require countries who have national ID cards to carry passports? I’m not certain…
August 12th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
For Ryanair an EU identity card is sufficient only we don’t have them so we need our passports except for trips to UK where a driving licence is enough.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
No I’m not sure. I know it’s Passports and Driving Licenses here so maybe it is National ID cards in other countries.
August 12th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
Jose, the Spanish lad living with me, flies with Ryanair Shannon to Alicante and he uses his Spanish ID card. You can check it yourself here Eoin, scroll down a bit first:http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/conditions.php?pos=MYFLIGHT
Any German or French friends coming to Ireland with Ryanair also use their ID cards; a passport costs more money and is only needed for going outside Europe.
August 12th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
Pesky ID cards, who’d want those things anyway
August 13th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
Was she hot?
August 13th, 2008 at 10:18 pm
Did you clarify if she was legal?
August 14th, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Brian, I think you got your websites mixed up again - check to see on the other site if they’re wondering why you posted “Tesco’s on Paul St?” under BigBoy86654’s torrid little posting…
November 1st, 2008 at 10:34 pm
Hello!
The same happened to me and im completely fed up! Im a 26 yrs old
poor Hungarian foreigner from Cork. I tried to purchase 2 cans of
cider in the city centre in a Saturday afternoon with my Hungarian
National ID and the lady at the counter asked for my ID. I showed it
to her, and told her that i was 26 and there will be no problem. She
recognised from my accent that i was a foreigner and without even
looking at the ID and searching for my age she said, that she
cant accept my ID. I asked why, and she just said, she cant accept it. I
was immediately asking for the manager and she just said the same,
and that i would need a Garda ID and i can buy it for 10 euros. I said,
that i dont understand why i need it, as Hungary is a part of the EU,
since 2004 im free to travel, work and live here with a normal ID. I
dont want to go to the policy to be registered for buying cider and i dont
want to pay a single cent if i have the right to purchase alcohol as im
8 yrs older than 18. Thus, i dont understand, if it is the Tesco policy,
why they dont ask for every single person for ID, why they just
pick up people they dont like. I regard this as discrimination and i
have already contacted the Hungarian embassy and Tesco customer
services. I was arguing with the manager and said, that i can accept
their rules, their policy but i just want to see it. Of course they didnt have any policy (Cork is the second biggest city in Ireland and they dont have any copies of policies there i cant imagine…)
I am completely fed up and im ready for fight my rights. I dont think that
it is right to give someone (an 18 yrs old stupid irish at the counter) the right and power to discriminize me and spoil all my evening and refuse
selling 2 cans of cider. My experiences were sent to several Hungarian
and Irish media, newspapers, magazines…
Still waiting for response from Tesco customer services…
November 14th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
I write to you tell my experience in Tesco.
In fact on the 7 nov 2008 i decided with my friends to do the shopping in Tesco branch Paul ST Cork and when i went to the checkout the cashier asked me for my ID. I showed my French ID.
But to my surprise the cashier explained that it s not recognised in Tesco.
I asked to talk with the manager and he explained to me the same things.
In fact in Tesco it s impossible to buy alcoohol without your passeport.
Yet with my French ID it s possible to travel through Europe.
3 hours later i decided to return in Tesco with my passeport and when i went to the checkout, nobody asked me for my passeport.
I asked to talk with the manager a second time.
Of course i wanted to know why the first time the policy of Tesco is :
Not to sell alcoohol without requesting a passeport and the second time it s possible .
The second manager explained to me that the first time maybe i was wearing jeans and now i was wearing a dress , so perhaps i looked older.
I m very shocked by the policy of Tesco and by the attitude of the two managers.
I felt dismissed because of my less than perfect commond of the English language and also judged an account of the particular clothes i chose to wear.
Djamila 32 years
November 19th, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Thanks for your comments Tschabee and Djamila… the policy seems more than a little dubious. And of course I still have not received any answer to my email.
November 20th, 2008 at 8:50 pm
I already talked to many Tesco “managers” in Cork in two different Tesco’s (Paul Str and Mahon) and they were telling me different
stories. I only asked them to show me the Tesco policy, where it
is written that EU national ID cards as age prove are not accepted for purchasing
alcohol in Tesco stores. They told me, that they don’t have
the policy in the store (how strange) and i should call Tesco customer
care line. I did it. The first time the lady on the phone told me that
she has to check this out and will give me a ring back. Of course she didnt do it. When i called the second time she told me, that she can’t
help me further. I should go to the store, the policy should be available for everyone. I went back to the store, they told me that i should call
Tesco customer services…
An employee in Tesco told me, that it is the Tesco policy an other manager told me, that it is the Irish law, not Tesco’s policy.
Now i got an other number: Tesco main office Dublin. I’m curios but
im afraid, i know what the result will be…
I don’t give up. I really want to know why Tesco discriminate foreigners
living and working in Ireland, why my own national ID is less then
an Irish one. My driving licence and national ID is my official prove of
age (photo, date of birth written in clear English) accepted by all
authorities, we are able to travel and settle down in European countries
with it but we can’t buy a can of beer or cider. Thus i can’t accept the power of the cashier over us, who can decide whether to check my ID or not whether to serve me or not. There are lot of young foreigners in Ireland who dont want to carry a passport all the time or they dont even have one. In this cases it is not about not being able to show an ID,but
showing an ID and proving the age and then getting refused. The person at the counter should recognise that we are not under 18 any more and our ID cards also prove it, so he/she doesnt have any fear getting a fine ( i know that they get a fine if they serve a person under 18)but
he/still possess the power to refuse the purchase regarding a policy which is not available, which no one could show me…
We live in this country, paying the taxes and as European citizens should have the same rights as any other Irish person and shouldnt be discriminized. To be continued…