A Campbell River restaurant will now have to pay a $7,000 fine after they were caught serving beer to a minor.
A hearing was conducted on Apr. 14 after the Social Restaurant and Lounge, who is authorized to sell liquor from 9 a.m. to midnight, served an 18-year-old.
According to the licensee of the restaurant did not dispute of events that led to the fine as all staff are properly trained on policies and procedure, but said with the amount of business they were getting it’s quite possible the server was distracted.
The court decision indicates the defence tried to establish due diligence, but according to the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch (LCRB) for that to work the facility must pass two tests.
This includes providing adequate training and rules for staff, and ensuring the rules are being followed on an ongoing basis.
LCRB Delegate Paul Devine says in the judgement there was no evidence to support any additional training measures taken by the establishment to make sure rules are followed and therefore it makes the due diligence defence void.
“In view of lack of evidence about follow up training on the licensee’s policies or means of conducting discussions among staff about service issues that may occur from time to time, I’m not satisfied that the licensee has satisfied the second test of due diligence,” Devine says. “For this reason, the defence of due diligence fails to apply.”
Since this was the first infraction by the establishment, Devine only ordered them to pay $7,000, which is the minimum that can be imposed, a second offense could lead to a $15,000 fine and possibly a 21-day suspension.
