Many UK convenience stores not checking ID for age-restricted products

A study by self-sovereign identity solutions firm ID Crypt Global has noted that the low rate of ID checks for those visiting convenience stores in the UK enables minors to access products prohibited for their age group.

According to Business Money, the ID Crypt Global study also shows that there has been a significant increase in the number of convenience stores in the UK, with the sector generating an estimated £47 billion in total revenue, which makes the problem even more preoccupying.

The study says about 37 percent of the 31,763 convenience stores currently existing across the UK are failing to ensure users go through proper age verification so as not to purchase items like tobacco or alcohol, which are age-barred.

Commenting on the developments unveiled by ID Crypt Global, its chief executive officer and founder, Lauren Wilson-Smith, appreciated the notable growth in the convenience stores sector. Still, she noted that one of retailers’ most pressing difficulties is having the resources to deploy the necessary technology to protect customers.

“For example, we’ve seen the sophisticated advances that many big brands have now made within their checkout infrastructure, with self-serve checkouts that help streamline the process while still ensuring that any age-prohibited products are flagged,” says Wilson-Smith.

“This is certainly an area of concern for smaller convenience stores, with well over a third failing ID check tests altogether. This is largely down to human error, with many minors knowing that a smaller store with fewer staff and technology resources is an easier target to the often more rigid approach taken by big supermarket brands.”

She adds that while the sector grows, it is vital for it to keep the steam on improving the standards required to protect people in the communities in which the stores operate.

The Spirit Business cites the ID Crypt Global CEO as lamenting the rate at which minors (about 1.7 million children between 11 and 17 years old) make illegal alcohol purchases in a similar article. This is happening not only because of the reported negligence of retailers but also because some of the minors, many of them school children, use fake IDs.

According to ID Crypt, retailers who sell alcohol to underage buyers could face up to 2 billion pounds (US$2.3 billion) in fines yearly. In comparison, those for tobacco sale could also face an annual penalty of up to £677 million ($778 million).

“These sales are in danger of facing some substantial financial penalties if caught. £5,000 is a huge fine but it’s not only the fine that has to be taken into consideration. It’s the responsibility of each license holder to ensure they uphold the law,” says Wilson-Smith.

Highlighting the way ID Crypt is helping check the problem, the CEO states: “The good news is that 21st-century technology is helping to advance the ways we can prove an identity by allowing consumers to create verified, digital proof of identity that can be stored via mobile devices securely and with no third party access to personal data profiles.”

Other technology providers currently focusing on solutions to verify technology in the UK include Yoti, which has recently piloted its age estimation technology in gambling machines, and ITL, which has deployed its biometric system to alcohol retailers.

Article Topics

age verification  |  biometrics  |  digital ID  |  face biometrics  |  retail biometrics  |  standards  |  UK