But SHE"S the one buying them.

[Super Cashier]

Last week, two girls came to my register to buy cigarettes. Only one of them had their ID, and the other didn't. Below is what transpired:

Me: Who else?
GID: Girl w/ ID
SF: Sucky Friend

I check GID girl's ID, and I look at her friend.

Me: Okay, now I need to see your ID as well.
SF: Why? I'm not the one buying them, she is.
GID: Yeah, and besides, they're for me, not her.
Me: I understand that, but because she's with you, I have to check her ID as well. That's store policy.

They both start talking over each other, saying they've done this before without a problem, that other people don't check for ID, etc etc; And my response was:

Me: Great! Now I just need to check her ID as well!

They both look at each other with shocked looks on their faces, as if this was the first time this has ever happened to them. Then;

SF: Are you shitting me?
Me: No.
SF: I said are you shitting me?
Me: No, I'm not.

At this point, she starts glaring at me. I guess she's not used to people saying no to her. GID starts to calm her friend down, saying that it's alright. They buy the rest of their merchandise, with no cigarettes. On their way out, SF flips me off. Class act. Me, the CSM, and the other customers had a good laugh about that one.

I think they took that well, don't you?

[blas]

Oh oh, let me guess....the one girl who had ID.......she was probably 18-24 years of age, right?

I used to get that a lot. You wouldn't believe me if I told you, but heck, the people who seemed the MOST shocked that they were being carded (back in my days of gas station angst...oops I mean bliss) were people who were BARELY over 18 or BARELY over 21. Yes, you heard me right. Someone who hasn't even been a legal adult for very long would get upset over being carded.

Don't ask me why. I mean, sure, a few older people may get offended if you work at a place that cards everyone, but in my experience, the barely legals are the ones who pitch the biggest fit. It's as if, in their own little stupid minds, they think that once they hit the magic 18, they will NEVER be carded for smokes, and once they hit 21, they will NEVER be carded for beer.

[Pixagi]

Oh oh, let me guess....the one girl who had ID.......she was probably 18-24 years of age, right?

I used to get that a lot. You wouldn't believe me if I told you, but heck, the people who seemed the MOST shocked that they were being carded (back in my days of gas station angst...oops I mean bliss) were people who were BARELY over 18 or BARELY over 21. Yes, you heard me right. Someone who hasn't even been a legal adult for very long would get upset over being carded.

Don't ask me why. I mean, sure, a few older people may get offended if you work at a place that cards everyone, but in my experience, the barely legals are the ones who pitch the biggest fit. It's as if, in their own little stupid minds, they think that once they hit the magic 18, they will NEVER be carded for smokes, and once they hit 21, they will NEVER be carded for beer.

Funny thing is, my fiance has it just the other way around. He just hit 21, and now realizes what I've been telling him forever: You look over 27.

He gets pissy when he buys us drinks because he doesn't get carded unless I'm there ^__^

[SubwayGirl]

Just a question that I have been curious about. I am a smoker. I am 40. So if I come in with my 17 year-old son I wouldn't be able to buy cigarettes because he is not old enough?

[Liminality]

I've never heard of that policy before. If they were co-operating and buying their wares individually, but obviously still together - chatting whilst buying, would you still need to see the ID? Or what if the friend with the ID walked back in while the one who didn't have it waited outside, would that be allowed? o_o

[Boozy]

Just a question that I have been curious about. I am a smoker. I am 40. So if I come in with my 17 year-old son I wouldn't be able to buy cigarettes because he is not old enough?

I know...this "carding everyone in the party" rule does not make a lick of sense to me either.

Perhaps you would have to tell your son to stay out of the store and hide around the corner so the clerk doesn't see him. Seems silly.

[blas]

I would imagine your son would get carded as well. If someone came into the gas station with a baby or toddler or small child, I wouldn't card both because I doubt anyone actually buys their under 10 year olds cigarettes. But if the kid appears 12 or over, I got suspicious that mommy or daddy was buying cigarettes for their kid. Which, morally, if a parent really doesn't care, then it SHOULD be ok, however, in the eyes of the law, it's purchasing for a minor, which is against the law and comes with a hefty fine and a nice dent in your record, plus a nice fine for the store (remember the first Clerks movie?) if it was a secret shopper duo. That sounds odd, but I'm sure they do those just to make sure "everyone in the party carded" is being enforced.

Sorry if I offended any parents of teens who are allowed to smoke but there was no way in hell I was willing to risk my job or risk getting someone in trouble just because you think it's ok to let your kid smoke. If it's that important to you, have your kid stay in the car or stay home.

[UncleImpy]

That's...odd. So if a guy came in to buy cigs and you saw he had a teenager in his car...you'd still have to card them? Seems to me like smokers will start going elsewhere after this annoyance goes on for a bit.

[aniwahya]

0_o
I think given the same situation as that girl w/ ID I would have responded the same.

If you have evidence that someone is buying cigs or alcohol for someone else, I can see carding everyone, and by evidence i mean overhearing them asking or having someone stand outside and approaching random customers. But to just assume that two people together the overage person is buying for the underage person is beyond my comprehension.

[Record Store Tough Guy]

I would be annoyed by this policy as well. I have younger cousins, and if I was denied the tasty adult beverage of my choice because they were with me, I would just go somewhere else. I wouldn't be sucky about it, but I would make sure they knew their policy was the reason for my decision. I wouldn't be going back anytime soon, either.

[Brightglaive]

I hate to say it but when I was a teenager I had friends that were over 19 that would buy cigarettes for their friends that were under 19 and unable to smoke. So it makes sense.

[Shabo]

I think alcohol is considerably different that cigarettes though. For example, if you are 21+ and have some underage people with you, and you are not buying liquor for them, you would simply have them wait in the car because liquor stores are required to check id of people regardless of whether *they* are actually making the purchase or not. With parents, I believe it is different since parents can give their children liquor in their private homes as long as the kids don't give it to friends and stuff. Cigarettes? I probably would have carded both of them too, unless one of them waited outside.

My guess to the people that are barely old enough to buy restricted substances- practice from when they weren't old enough.

[PaRaGaS]

I never got carded for anything in my life.
Then again, I've been told I look anywhere between 21-30 years old.

[Aggravated Associate]

I can attest to this, but in the form of alcohol.

I once dated a guy in a band, and all of the girlfriends went to one of the bands' out-of-state shows. Therefore, one car. After the show, four of us decided to go to a grocery store, in the one car. We walked in together, split up, and picked out our stuff. I paid for my food or whatever, and I and the other girl I was with waited at the front for them so that we could all leave. The other two went through one of the tills to buy some alcohol. The cashier and another person who appeared to be a manager called myself and my friend over and demanded I.D. When we didn't have it, they basically threw us all out of the store, and wouldn't sell the alcohol our counterparts wanted, even though they were both in their mid-twenties.

I understand the policy, but it was pretty dumb. We could have just walked in ten seconds apart instead of together, pretended not to know each other, and there would have been no issue. There has to be some kind of solution to this that actually makes more sense.

[bigjimaz]

In the store's defense. I can understand the reasoning. There is nothing to prevent someone coming in to the store to buy things that are illegal for everyone they are with to purchase. By carding everyone in the party, it keeps the store from being held responsible (or the subsequent fine) for breaking the law if the legal age person was buying the product for one of the underage people in the party.