Supermarket Age Check Services
Supermarkets sell the widest range of age-restricted goods due to the breadth of their ranges. Some age restricted products are sold on the shelves (knives/alcohol) and some sold at separate kiosks such as the tobacco counter so the challenge is to ensure all customer facing staff are practicing challenge/think 25 when serving customers purchasing an age restricted item.
List of age restricted products sold in supermarkets:
- All tobacco products
- Alcohol
- National Lottery and the Health Lottery
- Scratch cards
- Cigarette lighter refills, butane
- e-Cigarettes or e-Liquids
- Fireworks and sparklers
- PEGI 18-rated games
- 18/R18 rated videos (DVDs/Blu-Ray/streaming videos)
- Knives, axes, razor blades (except safety razors)
- Newspapers/magazines with any R18/R18 videos/games attached
- Solvents, including glues and intoxicating substances
Centrebound provides a full UK and Ireland test purchasing scheme that can audit supermarkets, regardless of the their location. We have a network of over 1,000 registered 18 to 21 year old test purchasing auditors all over the country including the Highlands, Isle of Wight and Cornwall. We have the capacity to audit your entire network quickly and effectively using our well briefed and professional auditors.
What are the risks of selling age restricted goods to minors?
Supermarkets can face considerable fines and negative PR if they are found to be selling alcohol or any other age restricted goods to minors. Tesco were fined £6,000 in 2009 for repeatedly selling alcohol to minors and their Blackpool store had their liquor license revoked for 28 days. The story received national coverage such as this article in the Daily Express: https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/91579/Tesco-fined-over-under-age-sales
How Centrebound helps improve Challenge 25 compliance
Having a Challenge 25 or Think 25 process in place will obviously help avoid selling to minors, but its not the complete solution. Only through regular test purchasing audits can adherence to the law be achieved. Mystery shopping will not only highlight the stores and counters that need further training, but the presence of a test purchasing scheme itself encourages positive behaviours in the customer facing staff. A compliance mystery shopping program can also include CX measures and be used to reward high performing supermarkets/staff and incorporated into existing reward and recognition schemes. Centrebound is an MSPA registered mystery shopping company and we have been providing UK’s biggest retailers with test purchasing services since 2013.
If you would like a no obligation quote for Centrebound’s age restricted goods test purchasing services please contact us.