The Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 covers the safe and responsible sale, supply, and consumption of alcohol and the minimisation of harm caused by its excessive or inappropriate use. It replaced the Sale of Liquor Act 1989.
What the law is trying to do
The object of the Act is safe and responsible sale, supply, and consumption of alcohol and the minimisation of harm caused by its excessive or inappropriate use.
This is different from previous legislation where the object of the Sale of Liquor Act 1989 was limited to a ‘reasonable system of control’ over the sale and supply of liquor in order to ‘reduce liquor abuse’.
Key points of the Act
- Parental consent is required to supply alcohol to a person under 18.
- If alcohol is supplied to a minor - it must be done responsibly.
- Find out more about age and the law.
- Local councils can adopt local alcohol policies to make local rules for alcohol licensing. Find out more.
- Objections to licences can be made on a wide range of matters.
Find out how to object.
- Alcohol promotions are controlled so they don’t encourage excessive alcohol consumption or drinking by people under-18.
- Regulations may be made to ban some alcohol products.
- Supermarkets and grocery stores are required to limit the display and advertising of alcohol to a single non prominent area of their store.
National guidance on alcohol promotions - Off-licensed premises
National guidance on alcohol promotions - On-licensed premises
- Unless local councils decide differentlyon-licences have maximum hours of 8am–4am
off-licences have maximum hours of 7am–11pm.- In many cases actual permitted hours will be less than these.
- People are allowed on licensed premises from 6am for breakfast meetings and up to half an hour after closing time – providing alcohol is not being sold.
- Dairies and convenience stores will not be issued with licences.
- Supermarkets and other stores will not be able to set up stores within their stores for a full off-licence.
- District licensing committees (DLCs) in each district issue licences.
- Medical Officers of Health can report on all licences.
- Appeals and enforcement matters are dealt with by the Alcohol Regulatory and Licensing Authority (ARLA).
- There is a range of criteria to be taken into account before issuing licences, including the object of the Act, local alcohol policies (LAPs), design and layout, and amenity and good order.
- On-licences and club licensees must providefree drinking water
- non-alcoholic drinks
- low-alcohol drinks
- food
- help with information about transport.
- There is scope for any reasonable condition to be imposed on licences, including:
- who may be sold alcohol
- one way door restrictions
- conditions set out in local alcohol policies.
- Special licences for large scale events may have conditions relating to management plans, Resource Management Act and building code compliance, and Police liaison.