from Shamus Lehal, Londis retailer
Sir; After more than six months of waiting, Trading Standards has finally written to me with a warning letter stating they will take no further action on my test-purchasing failure this time.
The letter goes on to state that to ensure this type of breach is not repeated in the future, I should set up a number of procedures. These should include staff training, the use of a refusals log book, the use of visual material at the till to remind staff to ask for ID and the possible use of an electronic till prompt when an age-related product is scanned. My premises will be revisited in the future and any breaches found may result in a less lenient course of action. The letter concludes that should I require any further advice or information then I should contact them.
I did contact Trading Standards to explain that I already have all the procedures it recommends in place. I also explained that I would welcome further test-purchasing in partnership with them on a regular basis without the threat of prosecution. This, they said, was not possible due to costs.
This leads me to conclude that Trading Standards and the government are not really interested in working with retailers, but rather in statistics and finding scapegoats.
While I am grateful that I will not be prosecuted this time, I believe that the real crime was not committed by my staff in selling to under-age customers, but rather by Trading Standards using rather over-zealous entrapment methods.
Sir; After more than six months of waiting, Trading Standards has finally written to me with a warning letter stating they will take no further action on my test-purchasing failure this time.
The letter goes on to state that to ensure this type of breach is not repeated in the future, I should set up a number of procedures. These should include staff training, the use of a refusals log book, the use of visual material at the till to remind staff to ask for ID and the possible use of an electronic till prompt when an age-related product is scanned. My premises will be revisited in the future and any breaches found may result in a less lenient course of action. The letter concludes that should I require any further advice or information then I should contact them.
I did contact Trading Standards to explain that I already have all the procedures it recommends in place. I also explained that I would welcome further test-purchasing in partnership with them on a regular basis without the threat of prosecution. This, they said, was not possible due to costs.
This leads me to conclude that Trading Standards and the government are not really interested in working with retailers, but rather in statistics and finding scapegoats.
While I am grateful that I will not be prosecuted this time, I believe that the real crime was not committed by my staff in selling to under-age customers, but rather by Trading Standards using rather over-zealous entrapment methods.
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