Business information

Costly error lands licensee in court

A Hoddesdon licensee is counting the cost of an expensive assumption.

Serdar Akbay thought that because a 15-year-old girl trying to buy alcohol in his father's shop had not attempted to make herself look older, she must be 18.

The girl, a volunteer for Hertfordshire Trading Standards, was sold a bottle of Archers Aqua Raspberry and Serdar found himself in Hertford Magistrates' Court.

Serdar, 24, a premises licence holder and designated premises supervisor at Hoddesdon Food and Wine, in Ware Road, was fined £200 by magistrates on Wednesday after pleasing guilty.

Keith Emsall, executive member for community safety and culture, said: "Here again we have a licensee not fulfilling his obligations. It takes seconds to check for ID, but some licensees still think they can take the chance in order to make a quick sale.

"Magistrates have shown time and again through the size of the fines that they share our exasperation with this attitude and I hope that licensees will start paying attention to the costs of being caught out.

"In this case, it was just a fine. But other offenders have lost their licence and then potentially their livelihood."

Serdar, of Edinburgh Crescent, Waltham Cross, was also ordered to pay £272.58.

The undercover operation took place during November and December last year. The volunteer bought the alcohol from Hoddesdon Food and Wine on December 4.