The responsible sales and service of alcohol beverages is a vitally important part of any food and beverage operation. With the increase in liability, sting operations, and underage sales crackdowns, it is more important than ever that your staff is trained how to effectively and safely serve alcohol to your customers.

In today's hyper-litigious society, you and your establishment are constantly at risk when serving alcohol. Although the current hotbutton is to focus on eliminating underage sales, it is equally important that you and your staff are trained to eliminate serving alcohol to visibly intoxicated customers. It is these customers that can have the most devastating effects on your business, especially if they injure another person while driving under the influence of alcohol.

Alcohol server/seller training focuses on a few key service aspects. Most programs will cover topics such as age verfication and ID techniques, the physical effects of alcohol, recognizing intoxciation, and customer intervention techniques to eliminate the overservice of alcohol. Some programs will also offer sections that deal specifically with your state laws so that employees understand their responsibility for the safety of your customers.

Over 22 states have some mandatory or voluntary regulations covering alcohol server training. For example, states such as Wisconsin, Utah, Lousiana and Washington make alcohol server training mandatory for alcohol servers and/or managers. Other states such as Texas (TABC certification), Florida, Arkansas and South Dakota have voluntary training requirements that offer some protection if you or your staff violate alcohol serving laws.

Alcohol server training programs are available in classroom modules, such as TIPS and Serv Safe, while others are available online such as TABCpermit.com for TABC certification and ServerLicense.com for Wisconsin Certification. Both training options work well, the best being dependant on your unique situation.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• Make sure that all of your employees are trained in responsible alcohol sales and service before they start working. While this is not guaranteed to eliminate alcohol-related incidences, it will give you the peace of mind that you have done all you can to protect your customers and your business.

The official source of Responsible Alcohol Sales and Service is
the Liquor and Spirits Information Resources page at Business.com