If you sell or supply intoxicating liquor via remote means (such as selling online or selling by phone), you need to either display the prescribed notice on your online shop in a reasonably legible manner, or read out the contents of the prescribed notice, such as play a recording of the contents of the prescribed notice, before selling alcohol.
What Remote Distribution Means
Remote distribution refers to all types of sale and supply of intoxicating liquor other than face-to-face distribution. Some examples of this are the sales and supplies of alcohol via electronic means, online websites, telephone calls, mail orders, etc.
How all sellers/suppliers, store owners/managers, and delivery staff can comply with the law
It is the responsibility of the sellers to ensure that alcohol is only sold to purchasers over 18. Sellers should have an effective system in place to avoid illegal sale of alcohol to minors. All sellers and suppliers should make sure the prescribed signs are displayed legibly, be it on a printed order form or on the web, or its contents are read out properly. They should also make sure the buyer/recipient’s age declaration is received and there is no cause to reasonably suspect that the declaration is false before the alcohol sale. Additional to this, store owners or managers should provide training and clear instructions to their employees on the law requirement. Moreover, delivery staff under the direct employment of the company that completed the sales should ensure the recipient of the alcohol order is over 18 years old and same steps should be taken to ascertain the age of the buyer as stated in paragraph 2.2.
How to prepare the prescribed sign for:
i. Online sale of alcohol
Sellers of online stores must display a legible prescribed notice of both Chinese and English versions at their online stores. For a sample of the sign, you may visit TACO website at www.taco.gov.hk
ii. Telephone order of alcohol
Sellers who sell liquor through telephone orders must cause the contents of the prescribed notice in either Chinese or English to be read out to the buyer, either in person or by playing audio recordings. If the conversation is conducted in Chinese, use the Chinese version; if the conversation is conducted in another language other than Chinese, use the English version. For a voice recording sample, you may visit TACO website at www.taco.gov.hk.
iii. Mail order (using catalogues or forms) of alcohol
Sellers using mail order must display a legible prescribed notice of both Chinese and English versions on the order forms. For a sample, you may refer to Annex A or visit TACO website at www.taco.gov.hk
iv. Other forms of remote distribution
Sellers who sell liquor through other electronic means of remote distribution shall: - In the case of a sales or supply platform published in the form of a visual image (including text) or a series of moving visual images – display the prescribed sign; or - In the case of a sales or supply platform published in the form of a sound recording, or an oral communication – express the contents of the prescribed sign either in Chinese or English (depending on the language used in the platform)
For more age declaration or remote distribution requirement samples, please refer to TACO’s website https://www.taco.gov.hk/a/english/downloads/files/Remote_Distribution_Samples.pdf
Tips for delivery
If delivery of the liquor is required to complete the customer’s order in the case of remote distribution, then you should ensure the following requirements are being met, on top of the above mentioned requirements, in order to avoid breaking the law: If the delivery staff is employed by the company involved in the sales, then the delivery staff is responsible for ensuring that the receiver is of age when receiving the alcohol package. He/she should ensure that an age declaration to the effect that the buyer/receiver has attained 18 years of age, has been received before delivery. If there is any doubt about the receiver’s age, the delivery staff should check their ID before giving the receiver the package. If the receiver’s age cannot be ascertained and there is doubt about his/her age, no delivery shall be made.
If the delivery staff (who is employed by the company involved in the sale/supply of liquor) delivers the liquor package to a person under the age of 18, both the delivery staff and the company may be prosecuted. Delivery staff who are employed by a delivery company who is not involved with the sales are exempt from this provision of the legislation.
Concerning remote distribution and delivery
What exactly does remote distribution include?
Remote distribution refers to any transactions not covered by face-to-face distribution. Examples of selling alcohol by remote distribution include but are not limited to: online stores; shop by phone; mail order, etc.
Companies nowadays use a variety of electronic means and media to market alcoholic drinks. They include: television and radio broadcasting, internet tools, social media platforms, and mobile phone applications. How can companies comply with the legal requirements?
All sale and supply in all forms of remote distribution are required to comply with the prescribed notice requirements. Remote sellers have to display the Chinese and English versions of the prescribed notice on the printed order form or on their online stores before check out, or to cause the contents of the prescribed notice to be read out should it be a phone order. In addition, they must obtain an age declaration from the buyer prior to the sale or supply. These requirements must be complied with no matter what electronic means or media are used to market alcoholic drinks , as long as sale or supply of alcohol in the course of business is involved. However, pure advertisements and promotional materials are not covered by the scope of the new legislation.
Will the delivery staff bear legal liability for having delivered alcohol to a minor in the course of business?
If the delivery staff is employed under the company that sold or supplied the alcohol, then they have an obligation to ensure that the recipient of the alcohol order is an adult, and should ensure that an age declaration has been received prior to the delivery, and there was nothing that caused the delivery staff to reasonably suspect that the declaration was false. Although the legislation does not require the delivery party to check the ID of the recipient, doing so will ensure that the 13 recipient is indeed of legal age. If the delivery party is unable to ascertain the recipient’s age, the delivery staff can refuse to hand over the alcohol. In case the alcohol was delivered to a minor, even if the delivery staff was not involved directly in the specific sale/supply order, the delivery staff and the company may be liable. Alternatively, if the delivery party is employed by a delivery company that is not involved with the sale or supply, then the delivery party will not fall under the new regulatory regime.
What forms of age declaration are accepted in remote distributions and can be used as a defence?
The following are examples of age declarations that are accepted as defences:
- Online example: Tick a box with the statement “I declare I am over 18 years old”
- Telephone example: The purchaser can make a verbal declaration over the phone For more age declaration or remote distribution requirement samples, please refer to TACO’s website https://www.taco.gov.hk/a/english/downloads/files/Remote_Distribution_Samples. pdf
6.3 Sample approach for delivery cases
After alcohol has been sold via remote means, a delivery may be required to complete the remote distribution order. If the delivery staff is employed by the company involved with the alcohol sale, the delivery staff will have the legal obligation to ascertain whether the recipient is over 18 years old before handing over the alcohol. The following are examples of how delivery staff can communicate with the recipient should there be any suspicion regarding the recipient’s age:
“Hello, I am here to deliver your parcel. As your parcel contains alcohol, I am required by law to ascertain that the recipient must be an adult before I deliver this parcel. May I please see your HKID card (or other proof of identity) so I could confirm that you are over 18 years old?”
Annex A –Sample of the prescribed notice
Under the law of Hong Kong, intoxicating liquor must not be sold or supplied to a minor in the course of business. 根据香港法律 ， 不得在业务过程中， 向未成年人售卖或供应令人醺醉的酒类。 卫生署控烟酒办公室 查询及投诉热线 : 2961 8823 Tobacco and Alcohol Control Office Enquiry and Complaint Hotline Department of Health |
If you would like a sample of the prescribed notice, please fill in the “Prescribed Notice Application Form” at the TACO website: https://www.taco.gov.hk/a/english/forms/files/pnotice_app_form.pdf
For a soft copy of the prescribed notice, please visit TACO website at https://www.taco.gov.hk/a/english/downloads/downloads_pnotice.html
Should you have any enquiries on where to place the prescribed notice, please refer to Part 2.1 of these guidelines. For more information on the legislation, please refer to the Dutiable Commodities (Liquor) Regulations (Cap. 109B) at https://www.elegislation.gov.hk/hk/cap109B
Comments