Law for Licensed Premises - Assignment Example

Laws for Licensed Premises Introduction In UK, the sellers and suppliers of alcohol or those intending to hold other activities such as entertainment are supposed to apply for a license. Premises licensing regulations follows an elaborate process for permission to run premises or hold other events (Hutter, 2011). The party should complete the application form, a conviction and declaration form that has been duly completed evidence of ownership of new National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders qualification, two passport size photographs (Martin, 2006). This document explores various licensing requirements and how to manage the workers in the licensed premises as well as examining employers’ responsibilities in the premises. 1.1. Types of licensed premises Liquor licenses refer to license issued to different types of premises to sell to authorize them sell alcohol to the public. It is under the regulation of Northern Ireland and is applicable to twelve types of premises (Hutter, 2011). The applicant of liquor license should deposit the application form to the court and ascertain they are qualified to hold liquor licenses and that the premises are suitable for the sale of alcohol. These are; hotels, off-licenses, guest houses, pubs, higher education institutions, restaurants, non-sea-going vessels, conference centres, indoor arenas, refreshment rooms available in public transport facilities, seamen’s canteens and places of public entertainment (Crown, 2018). The licensing laws imposes penalty to license holders for the breach of licensing requirements, the licensee, should have age checking policy to prohibit people of underage from taking alcohol and request for display of documents appropriate to prove the age and PSNI can withdraw the license if the premise owners engage in activities that deem to encourage excessive drinking (Crown, 2013). Apart from the liquor policies the following activities will require the operator to acquire a license before they are authorized to sell conduct those activities. These include dancing facilities, live music, theatre performance, dance, showing film, making music facilities, indoor sporting event, selling food and beverages between 11pm and 5am and boxing or wrestling (Martin, 2006). The applicant must be aged 18 or more years in order to attain the required license. Other types of licenses include personal license given to the applicant for authorization of the sale or supply of alcohol (Hutter, 2011). The license holder must be aged 18 years or more, should be in possession of accredited qualification training, should not have forfeited a personal license within five previous years and should have been convicted of a related crime. Temporary Event Notice (TEN) is a license issued to the applicant to authorize the sale of alcohol for a for short duration and within fixed time, but the period should not exceed one week (Crown, 2013). Club premise certificate authorizes the holder to supply alcohol or hold entertainment to Members Clubs premises (Crown, 2013). Personal license is acquired for the supply and sale of alcohol. It is valid for ten years. An application for an individual license is charged £37. Personal licensing allows individual movement from one premise to another (Crown, 2013). The candidates should be of majority age before they use for personal licence, and apply to the council in the area of one’s residence. 1.2. Differences Between a personal and premises license Personal license is issued to a designated supervisor of a premise dealing with alcohol or a person selling alcohol in UK whereas premise license is issued to a premise dealing with alcohol. Personal licenses ensure professionalism to the persons supervising sale supplies of alcohol (City of London licensing Authority, 2013). Personal license holder must meet qualification requirements and should be aged 18 years or more. On the other hand, premise license is issued to authorized designated activities such as the sale of alcohol, late-night refreshments and regulated entertainment. Under Gambling Act 2005, there are two types of club permits available to the applicants. These are club machine permits and club gaming permits. They are granted to members’ clubs and miners’ welfare institute to permit the holders to use three categories of gaming machines namely B3A, B4, C or D (Martin, 2006). The licenses are authorizes them to conduct “equal chance gaming and games of chance.” Music copyright is an exclusive right issued to the author or composer of the song to protect the sound and their structure against unauthorized user. It protects economic and moral rights of the composer in the songs or composition (Hutter, 2011). Temporary Event Notice is a license to authorize an individual or a premise to sell or supply premises for a short period usually not to exceed one week. 1.3. Licence applications procedures Applying for a license requires the applicant to fill an application form and deposit it to the local council accompanied with the application fee (Hutter, 2011). Depending on the type of licence one is applying for the application forms are sent to respective authorities and in some instances the copy of the application forms may be sent to the police. The licensing legislation aims to avert crime and disorder, promote public safety, safeguard children against harm as well as protect the public from nuisance (Martin, 2006). In addition, the licensing aims to promote nation building and balancing people’s rights and the right of communities. It reduces abuse of alcohol, support self-reliant, promote tourism and safeguard the community against avoidable business protections. Personal license application is made to the licensing authority in the area where the applicant resides. The application form is accompanied by official licensing qualification, criminal record confirmation and two passport sized photographs (Crown, 2013). The personal license fee is £37. The applicant can make an application online through the government website as long as they meet all the licensing requirements. Village halls, schools, etc. can apply for a temporary event notice permit to hold one-off occasion to get authority for sale of alcohol, hold public entertainment and late night refreshment (Hutter, 2011). The persons intending to hold such events are required to submit an application for to the council of environmental health accompanied by a fee of £21 and send another copy to the police at least ten working days before the day of the event. Premises license and club premises certificates The application form is filled and submitted to the licensing authority though the fee charged varies significantly with the value of premise or club. For example, Band A whose value ranges between £0 and £4,300 application fee is £100 while Band E whose value is £125,001 and above is £635. There are an additional charge made to the clubs and premises holding 5,000 or more attendants (Crown, 2013). Premises license lasts for as long as the premise lasts unless it is revoked. Extra charges are imposed on the license holder in case of loss or theft of the original license, transfer of the license to another premise or person, change or holders details, etc. 1.4. Assess guidelines on the conduct of licensed premised for use by staff The licensing bodies cannot grant licenses to the applicants who fail to satisfy the laid down standards. The premises seeking to acquire licensing should conduct the activities for which it was established for by applying professional and legislation competence (Hutter, 2011). The details provided to the licensing body should conform to the actual details of the premises, persons or activities performed by a person or in the premises. The licensed premises should conform to the building code, regulations, by-laws and all Acts of parliament. The premises and licensed persons should conform to the food safety requirements, food Act, Health Act and the by-laws of the local authority (Martin, 2006). The licensed premises should be able to operate on independently without any relationship with other venues. The plans and finishes of the building should be of business worth with capacity to withstand tears and wears relevant in such buildings, be waterproof, have galvanized tabular steel work on the counters, etc. Licensed premises should separate toilets for male and female clients. The toilets should be of superior quality with concrete floor, have ducted plumbing and cisterns, or should have fibro cement sheeting on the wall in case they are made of steel or timber (Crown, 2013). Furthermore, the toilet should be located in a secure place especially within the licensed premises to ensure the security of the clients. Hotel premises should have safe kitchen separated from the clients’ area, and the building materials for the kitchen should adhere to food safety rules. The entertainment premises should not exceed the authorized air pollution for such premises (Hutter, 2011). The premises should be fitted with safe materials for floor and war and should have clean and safe, separate toilet facilities for ladies and gentlemen. The wall and the floor of licensed premises, toilets and kitchen should be easy to clean (Health and Safety Executives, 2014). They should have adequate lighting and fitted with the system of identifying and blocking persons of under age from gaining accessing to the premises. In addition, the licensed premises should have adequate security in order to offer the clients protection against violence, theft, etc. The staff working at the licensed premises should be adequately trained to deal with activities the premises are licensed to perform. They should be properly informed in the regulation policies in order to ensure adherence with the regulations (Hutter, 2011). Effective staff is significant in ensuring safety and order, as well as policy adherence in the premises. The staff should can supervise all the activities of the licensed premises, report to the police any unwarranted behaviour and enforce the business policies for effective operations. The licensed premises should be equipped in safety equipments such as fire extinguisher, first aid kit, waste management guidelines, risk evaluation policies and compliance program, etc (Hutter, 2011). The premises should be used for the purposes authorized to perform, should have emergency exit guidelines, equipment maintenance policies, and should focus on customer safety as they leave the premises (Health and Safety Executives, 2014). For example, they should not allow clients to drive under the influence of alcohol. The businesses licensed to provide entertainment should avoid showing abusive films to their clients or any other material likely to demean the viewers’ integrity. Also, the person issued with personal license should ensure they have the relevant competence to perform the work they are licensed to conduct and ensure they observe the necessary regulations. 2.0. Staff guidelines on licensed premised 2.1. Consequences of providing consumers with misleading information Operators and suppliers dealing with consumer products have a responsibility to ensure they give the clients the right information regarding the products. The consumer safety and protection play the significant role in business and consumers have a right to any information regarding products quality, pricing, expiry date, etc. (Martin, 2006). Any form of advertisement, product labelling, packing, images, etc., nutrition and ingredient should disclose factual information about the products. The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 sets requirements for traders to ensure consumers are provided with adequate information that does not mislead their decision making (Crown, 2013). Whether the traders negligently or intentionally misleads consumers or distort, the consumer behaviour is considered guilty of an offence. In the case of consumer suffering injury due to misleading information given by the trader whether negligently or intentionally the consumer can sue the trader and request for payment of the loss experienced (Martin, 2006). However, the offended consumer should sue on the base that the trader issued misleading information to the consumer, and the consumer suffered injuries after relying on the trader’s misleading information. In case the trader mislead the consumer in regard to product pricing the deceive client can sue the operator to recover the excess amount paid on products (Health and Safety Executives, 2014). If the trader lied about expiry date of the products, strengths of the alcohol or any other information and, as a result, the client happens to suffer the loss after consumer the products dealers are liable for damages suffered by those consumers. Traders should use language that users can understand when stating terms and conditions or writing labels on the products (Hutter, 2011). If the product fails to meet appropriate purpose then, consumers can claim for a refund and compensation for the loss caused as a result of using bad product or delays during the return of the wrong product for an exchange with appropriate products. 2.2. Evaluate the extent of employer liability in the protection of consumers Consumers have right to choose their suppliers of goods and be given time to inspect the product quality before they make a purchase (Martin, 2006). The products should be without defects that may otherwise cause injury to the consumer and should be appropriate for a particular purpose. In the case of defect or unfit products the buyer has the right to return it the supplier in exchange for another a good quality product or for refund of client’s money (Crown, 2008). The pricing of products should be clear and in case the price tag indicates varying prices the client is liable to pay the lowest price. Consumers have right to receive warning from the traders concerning the potential risk likely to occur after the consumption of products (Hutter, 2011). For example, traders should warn consumers that excessive consumption of alcohol can harm their health. Traders should ensure consumer protection at their premises and clean environment. Traders should ensure consumers can enjoy a serene environment free from any disturbance during their stay at the premises. Finally, the premise owners should be ready to bear the consequences due loss suffered by clients at their premises (Martin, 2006). 2.3. Weights and measures legislation Customers need assurance that the products they purchase are accurate and worth the price they are paying for those products. It gives customers confidence to understand that the products are accurate in terms of weight and measure (Martin, 2006). In order to ensure the right weights and measures of the products consumers’ traders should ensure the weighing gadgets are inspected regularly, should have well trained and honest staff members and should disclose the quality of weighing machines and other equipments to the consumers in order to avoid any suspicion. Traders should disclose certificate of inspection for the gadgets used for weight and measures to the consumers to show their compliance with the weight and measures Act (Hutter, 2011). 3.1. Discuss the key components of a arrange of regulations Employees working at the licensed premises have a responsibility to ensure consumers and other visitors. They should assess various sources of risks likely to affect the clients and take precautionary measures to mitigate the risk (Hutter, 2011). They should ensure they have a written health and safety policy to guide their operations at the premises. For example, there should be a clear policy on how to take safety in case of fire outbreak such as having fire exit, fire extinguishers, and injury reporting procedure (Health and Safety Executives, 2014). In the case of injuries to the workers of customers there should be a precaution for handling the injuries such as having first aid box. Workers and the management of the premises should have environmental protection measures to ensure safety of the environment (Crown, 2013). This may require staff training and design policies on waste management and environmental protection. Other measures necessary for ensuring clients’ protection include noise regulation policies especially in entertainment premises to reduce environmental pollution. 3.2. Responsibilities of license premises Management The licensed person responsible for managing the licensed premises should can conduct the licensed activities competently and be able to take responsibility of the clients (Hutter, 2011). The licensed manager has a duty to train the staff about safety and install necessary safety equipment. The workers should report injuries to the appropriate authority (Martin, 2006). Also, all workers have a duty to ensure safety of the workplace and protect the visitors against potential dangers. Everyone in the premises including visitors has a responsibility to observe safety standards of the premise (Health and Safety Executives, 2014). The risk officer or the premise manager should conduct risk audit to ensure there is sufficient protection against risk in the organization. 3.3. Risk assessment for one type of licensed premises The hotel manager should evaluate the likely sources of risk such as the cause of fire, waste disposal methods, strength of the structures that may result to theft and so on (Crown, 2013). The manager should identify the persons who are prone to various risks at their premises such as clients, workers, persons, with disabilities, sleeping guests, etc. identification of persons prone to various forms of risk at the premise is essential because it determines the preventive measures that can be established to minimize the risk (Crown, 2008). The manager should conduct an evaluation of risk mitigating measures and establish means to reduce that risk. The identified risk mitigation factors should be documented and plan be implemented to provide training to the staff and issue warning to the visitors (City of London licensing Authority, 2013). Finally, the manager should review the measures put in place to determine the efficiency and establish any necessary change to improve risk control and implementation measures. 3.4. Impact of food safety and hygiene legislation Food safety and hygiene safeguards food handling, preparation and storage in a way that can prevent harm to the consumers such as foodborne diseases (Hutter, 2011). The food safety regulation focuses on ensuring food safety by sourcing it from reliable suppliers, ensuring food labelling, certification, etc. it ensures consumer get food from reliable sources and safeguards consumers against unsafe food consumption. Without adequate food safety regulation, consumers may suffer consequences of unsafe food consumption such as food poisoning due to contaminated food (Health and Safety Executives, 2014). 4.1. Legislative responsibilities of employers in relation to staff Employers should protect their businesses by ensuring they have qualified staff to implement the licensed activities are implemented with great efficiency. Companies should obtain safety training manuals and equipment and use them to train their staff (Martin, 2006). They should identify and record all hazardous equipment, label and store all chemical containers in a safe place (City of London licensing Authority, 2013). Employers should issue instructions and appropriate information to the workers to keep them informed about their exposure to various hazards. They should evaluate the various levels of risks their employees are exposed to and enforce monitoring process. They should control risks and maintain all risk audit reports of their activities (Hutter, 2011). They should link with emergency service organizations to ensure quick response system in case of any risk occurrence. Employers have a duty to remunerate the workers and provide them with safe working environment to keep workers motivated (Martin, 2006). They should protect the workers and compensate them for any injuries sustained at workplace. The employers should give workers leaves and other allowances and benefits and should not terminate their employment unfairly or treat them unfairly. 4.2. Aspects of discrimination legislation Employees’ discrimination is unfair treatment of employees by their employers based on various circumstances. For example, sex discrimination is where employers discriminate workers on the basis of gender orientation rather than personal competence and ability. According to Sex Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 1976 it is illegal for employers to discriminate employers on the basis of their sex (Martin, 2006). All workers should be treated fairly and should be subjected to uniform conditions irrespective of their gender. Another aspect of discrimination of an employee is based on race this is where workers are treated differently based on their social or racial discrimination (City of London licensing Authority, 2013). All workers should be treated equally and be paid equal salaries irrespective of where they come from. Discrimination on the basis of disability is another form of discrimination whereby workers with disabilities are denied better opportunities or not hired to work in the organization (Crown, 2013). All workers should be given equal opportunities to compete and be assessed on the basis of individual performance rather than their physical appearances. Conclusion Licensed premises and managers should ensure they carry out the activities they are authorized to perform. To obtain work permits and licenses, the applicants should follow due process and pay relevant fees upon satisfaction of the regulation requirements. They should exhibit competence in their work and ensure the safety of workers and consumers in accordance to safety regulations. Employers should safeguard their workers and clients and ensure fair treatment of their workers. Bibliography City of London licensing Authority, 2013. The Code of Good Practice for Licensed Premises. City of London. Crown, 2013. Alcohol licensing. GOV.UK. Available at Https://www.gov.uk/alcohol-licensing Crown, 2008. The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. Available at Http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2008/9780110811574/regulation/17 Health and Safety Executives, 2014. Legislation. Available at Http://www.hse.gov.uk/leadership/legislation.htm Hutter, B. M. 2011. Alcohol and Entertainment Licensing Law. UK: Edward Elgar Publishing. Pp. 1-211. Martin, D. M. 2006. Managing Food Safety and Hygiene. Thorogood Publishing 1-114. , Read More