Role of the Licence Holder
Having received a licence to sell alcohol you will become integral to the stores operation, you will be entrusted with taking responsibility for sales of alcohol made under your authority. If you are the sole personal licence holder your responsibility will extend to all alcohol sales made from the store in which you work, if there is more than one licence holder you can share the responsibility with others.However, it is important to note that there will always be one personal licence holder in overall charge of alcohol sales on the premises, the designated premises supervisor.
Authorising the Sale of Alcohol
As a personal licence holder you DO NOT have to be present at, or on the premises during, the sale of alcohol. A personal licence holder can give authority to others to sell alcohol, in their absence, however you cannot escape responsibility for any infringements of the premises licence or the law if occurs in your absence.
It is imperative that staff employed in the sale of alcohol are adequately trained to ensure that your staff know the law and what is required of them.
If staff employed under your responsibility break the licensing law, for example selling to underage customers, your personal licence could be at stake.
Who should hold a Personal Licence?
Every store has to have one personal licence holder responsible for the sale of alcohol. If there is only one individual then they will have to be the designated premises supervisor.
However it is possible for more than one personal licence holder to work at a store. For example if a store has a number of assistant managers it is worth considering the value of training them through the personal licence qualification. This will allow for a sharing of responsibility for alcohol sales. It will also reflect well on any applications for a licence or in the event of a review.
However, beyond the designated premises supervisor you are under no obligation to employ other personal licence holders.