On the level
Amid shifting COVID Alert Levels, alcohol licensing lawyer Pervinder Kaur looks at what to know about remote sales and supply of alcohol…
New Zealand’s recent Delta outbreak has been a reminder of how quickly daily life can change. Because ways of doing business shift between our Alert Level settings it’s worth taking time to understand what’s permitted when it comes to selling alcohol.
Bottle stores are considered non- essential services and must close to the public under Alert Levels 3 and 4, unless they are in Licensing Trust Areas and the bottle store is operated by the Licensing Trust in that area. Open premises in Licensing Trust Areas can operate with a one-in-one-out rule in Levels 3 and 4.
Online alcohol sales and delivery
Any holder of an alcohol off-licence can sell alcohol remotely. A remote seller uses the internet, telephone, mail or other means to sell and deliver alcohol to a person who is not at the remote seller’s premises. The term “remote seller” includes:
• a s 40 remote seller – an off-licence holder who sells remotely and has applied for and had their licence endorsed under s 40 of the Act.
• general off-licence remote sellers – all other off-licence holders who sell remotely, in addition to selling on the premises (for example – a bottle store, supermarket or winery).
Under Level 4, off-licence holders are allowed to sell and deliver alcohol remotely as long as they can do so through contactless delivery.
Under Level 3, alcohol can be delivered through contactless delivery or via a click and collect service.
Under Level 2, all off-licence holders can operate as normal as long as they meet all requirements of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 and comply with the new Level 2 rules as follows:
• masks are mandatory for retail workers; • workers must keep 1 metre apart and customers 2 metres apart;
• businesses are required to display a QR code or provide an alternative contact tracing system; and
• you may need to limit the number of people allowed on the premises to help with physical distancing.
Licensees with an off-licence endorsed under s 40:
• must deliver the alcohol they sell to somewhere else;
• delivery must not occur between 11pm-6am or at any time on Good Friday, or before 1pm on Anzac Day;
• delivery must not occur on Easter Sunday unless it is grape wine, or fruit or vegetable wine made on the premises;
• must appoint a manager but do not have to have a manager on duty at all times;
• are exempt from signage requirements for hours of business and the display of the licence at the physical premises to which the licence is issued;
• must ensure that the licence holder’s name, licence number and licence expiry date are displayed in a prominent place on any internet site and on any receipt issued for a remote sale;
• a legible image of the remote sellers’ licence or a clearly identified link to such an image must be displayed on any internet site used to sell alcohol;
• must take reasonable steps to verify that both the buyer and the receiver of any alcohol sold are 18 years old or over; and
• must not encourage excessive consumption of alcohol.
By comparison, general off-licence remote sellers must comply with all conditions of their licence, including not promoting and/or advertising discounts on alcohol in a way that leads people or is likely to lead people to believe that the discount offered is 25% or more.
In addition to the requirements above, off-licence remote sellers must also ensure that there is a comprehensive service agreement with their delivery service provider.
This includes making sure that the delivery provider is regularly training its staff in age verification systems and intoxication assessment guidelines, as those are the people delivering your alcoholic products. It pays to have the service agreement legally drafted and/or reviewed so the provisions of the service agreement are providing appropriate protection to you as a licensee.
From my experience, Police and the Medical Officer of Health have started looking into remote sales of alcohol more carefully to ensure that the sale and supply (delivery) of alcohol is undertaken safely and responsibly and that harm caused by inappropriate or excessive consumption of alcohol is minimised.
Pervinder Kaur is an Associate at Harkness Henry specialising in alcohol licensing and resource management law.