7 Star Food and Wine, a convenience store in Glenpark Road, Birmingham, has been fined after a 16-year-old was able to buy a bottle of Blue WKD vodka drink without being asked for identification. The sale came to light during a Trading Standards test purchase exercise carried out across the city in January.
Birmingham Magistrates Court heard that the underage volunteer took the bottle to the till, but the seller made no attempt to verify their age. The company, which pleaded guilty to the offence, accepted responsibility, with the court told that measures to prevent such a sale were in place but had not been implemented by the member of staff involved.
Test Purchase Operation Details
Kate Symms, prosecuting on behalf of Birmingham City Council, explained that two 16-year-olds, accompanied by officers, visited the store. One of the teenagers attempted to purchase the alcohol, and the transaction was completed without the seller asking for age verification or identification.
Symms described the matter as "really serious," stating: "We are doing everything we can to prevent these sales. The company failed to ensure processes were in place to stop this. There was no attempt to verify the age and a failure to apply the even basic Challenge 25. These measures should have been in place."
She noted that the company's director, Ajmeet Singh, had been fully cooperative throughout the investigation, and the business had no previous convictions.
Defence and Mitigation
David Dodds, defending, said systems were in place, including employee training, signage reminding staff of the Challenge 25 scheme, and a refusals record kept as required. He argued: "This is not one of those cases where the company failed to take any steps. The company has given reasonable instructions. A member of staff did not follow instructions but the company does accept its responsibility."
Dodds added that the test purchase was part of a general operation in the city and not intelligence-led, emphasising that no harm resulted as the alcohol was not consumed by a teenager. He also highlighted the company's full cooperation and guilty plea at the first opportunity.
Penalty and Costs
Magistrates fined the company £154, along with a surcharge of £62 and costs of £1,000. The total financial penalty amounts to £1,216, reflecting both the seriousness of the offence and the company's cooperative stance.
