Walmart and Beer

[LowParry]

So I was out shopping earlier today, bought one of those big 24 oz beer cans to use for some cooking. Get to the register. Beer gets scanned. Prompted on the LCD screen "Buyer over 40 years old"? I was like, what? Lady working there looked between me and the wife, asks for ID. I had mine, wife didn't. So everything comes to a halt. So the cashier says something I couldn't understand then walks off to find a manager. They get back and based off of me being the only one who's touched the beer, was given the ok for the purchase after showing ID.

Over 40? Is this like a Walmart thing or just Utah being Utah?

 

[Septimus Prime]

I think in CA, there's a rule where someone has to "look over 27" (whatever that means) in order to buy alcohol or tobacco without being carded. So maybe it's something like that? 40 is excessive, though.

 

[SideMatt]

Iirc the law in a lot of places is that they technically have to card you if you're not visibly above 40, but I don't know why your wife not having an ID would make a difference. That bit is weird.

 

[ChrisR]

Being over 40 most likely gives them the ability to let you purchase the beer with no ID.

I know Red Robin had the same kind of signs on their menu, "Under 49 and 1/2, we ID".

In Alaska, valid ID is required for every purchase. When I was a cashier, people HATED having to show their ID when they were very clearly at least 60 or 70 years old. But the law is the law and I don't want to get fired because the liquor board decided to send in an older person to test the cashier instead of an under-aged buyer.

 

[Fat4all]

If someone looks under 40 they get ID'd

that's the long and short of it

 

[How About No]

This is basic stuff. Not gonna take any risks, and lots of teens look older than they are.

And as someone who worked retail fuck any customer who has the audacity to bitch and cause a scene about this

 

[Wood Man]

So if your wife was holding the beer they wouldn't have sold it to you?

But I've seen the policy of "if you look under XX we ID"

 

[MrNelson]

This happens all over the place. It's a lot easier to gauge whether or not someone is over 40 (or close to) than it is to gauge if someone is over 21 based on looks alone.

 

[Jest]

Over X age and we card is just a thing establishments use as a rule to avoid a cashier selling to someone who may be underage but looks older.

Wife being carded as well is a State Law thing. I haven't been to Utah but I know when I was in Arizona they had a law that said everyone with the purchaser has to show ID.

 

[Bakercat]

similar problem I had with my fiance and I. I picked up a 6 pack once with my fiance, then girlfriend, and went to checkout. Cashier asked for my ID and I gave her it, but she also asked for my girlfriend's too. I was over 21 at the time, but she wasn't. the cashier got pissy with me and said she wouldn't sell to me. I told her that my girlfriend was actually my daughter (my fiance is short and looks super young a lot) and the cashier believed me and I walked out with my beer.

 

[patientzero]

Over X age and we card is just a thing establishments use as a rule to avoid a cashier selling to someone who may be underage but looks older.

Wife being carded as well is a State Law thing. I haven't been to Utah but I know when I was in Arizona they had a law that said everyone with the purchaser has to show ID.

Click to shrink...

Yup. Don't want to sell alcohol to someone if the people with them are underage, for a whole host of reasons.

Happened to me some years back with a friend. We were both over 21, barely, but she didn't have ID. She walked out to the car before purchasing to avoid any problems.

 

[Sanjuro]

Did she ask your second wife?

 

[BadHand]

You should of bought an assault rifle instead

 

[jfkgoblue]

That's standard Walmart practice. They don't want to come even close to being found guilty of not carding a minor, so they ID anyone that looks under 40 to be safe. They also don't want to be thought to allow people buying alcohol for minors so they require everyone present to be ID'd.

 

[lunarworks]

Ya, that weirded me out last time I was in the states. Walmart checks your ID if you look under 40. The LCBO only checks if you look under 25.

But the LCBO also has a similar policy. If anyone potentially underage, without proof of being of age (19), touches the product, you can't buy it. They turn you away.

 

[DorkLord54]

This is why I always go to the same places to buy alcohol so I don't have to keep getting carded.

 

[Nappuccino]

This is why I always go to the same places to buy alcohol so I don't have to keep getting carded.

Click to shrink...

But then you just run into the newb, like me, who has no idea who anyone is or what "Over 40" looks like, so the newb just cards everybody.

That was my first few months on the job, anyway.

 

[MangaFan462]

Its the law and its always a good idea to have your ID.

 

[BabyShams]

I hate when a store won't sell to me(31) with an ID because my friend forgot hers. You really think I'm buying this for minors?

 

[Goldenroad]

I feel like, as a person approaching 40 pretty rapidly...well, in the earlier part of my 30's, but I feel it coming....I think a person needs to look 70 for me to assume they are over 40.

 

[louiedog]

I was with some friends when we were in our early 20s buying beer at Walmart. Now, of course they needed to check our IDs and we all had them ready to go. No big deal.

What was weird is that we were doing 2 purchases among 4 people to more easily split the cost. Two of us were in one line and two of us were in an adjacent line. We were talking back and forth while waiting. When it came time to pay each cashier considered all 4 of us to be together and we had to show our IDs to both cashiers before either would check us out. I understand why it happened, but I don't understand why it was necessary. Maybe just being way too careful in interpreting their policy.