ABV levels scrutinised under Trade Descriptions law
Graeme Cushion, solicitor at licensing solicitors Poppleston Allen, looks at the pitfalls in bars of poor lighting and cleaning that can result in licensees falling foul of random ABV testing
As the authorities step up their enforcement visits in pursuit of their much-publicised “blitzes” on under-age sales and drunkenness, it’s worth checking whether you are in danger of breaching any other laws that can give rise to prosecution.
The deliberate watering-down of spirits is clearly a serious matter and prosecution by Trading Standards under the Food Safety or Trade Descriptions legislation can incur fines in the Crown Court for the most serious offenders.
What you might not realise is that the legislation extends beyond those who deliberately seek to defraud the public. It can also catch those who inadvertently – through poor storage of spirits – fall short in the levels of ABV.
One hazard occurs when bar staff wash free-pourers and replace them while wet. Health and Safety issues do have to be managed and monitored, but you need to ensure that their practices are within the law. To avoid a reduction in ABV, you need to ensure, therefore, that free-pourers are dried after being cleaned to avoid the introduction of water into the spirit. It’s also worth noting that this problem can be magnified in those spirits that are less frequently used, as the water content starts to rise over a longer period of time.
Another less obvious problem can be created when spirits are exposed to the elements for long periods, especially when temperatures fluctuate. This can cause evaporation of alcohol and a subsequent weakening of the spirits. In fact, many publicans who have a strongly lit back bar may be committing a crime without even realising it.
Different courts take different views as to seriousness of these offences, so it’s important to protect yourself by the introduction of a proper due diligence system. It is essential, for instance, to train staff to ensure that they are aware of the risks and the importance of storing spirits correctly.
You also need to carry out random testing to makes sure that spirits fall within the prescribed ABV limits. The Food Labelling Regulations allow a deviation of 0.3% from the ABV stated on the bottle, so you need to discard any product that falls below this level, and keep records of doing so.
Graeme Cushion can be contacted on Tel: 0115 953 8500, or log onto www.popall.co.uk