My friends and I went out for an impromptu night of dancing, but were turned away because one of them did not have his ID and another, unbeknownst to him, had a license that had recently expired. Sure my friends would be flattered to be mistaken as under 30, the minimum age used by liquor inspectors (confirmed by a representative at the Alcohol and Gaming Division of Service Nova Scotia). But, they are in fact 48 and 56 years old! On top of that, the staff member knows one of the men, and he actually had a military ID (albeit recently expired) with his picture and date of birth. I appreciate that staff need to exercise caution because it can be difficult to determine if younger people are the legal drinking age, and there is currently a huge influx of underage students arriving in Halifax making this task especially difficult. I also recognize that every establishment has its rights to establish its own policies. But, in this case, it seems the staff member and/or the night club’s policy is unnecessarily strict as these guys were clearly of age even though their IDs were expired. —Just wanted to work it
This article appears in Sep 12-18, 2013.
Does the place check everyone’s ID as a matter of policy? If so, that’s probably why.
And frankly, someone that old should be responsible enough to carry a current ID, especially if they’re driving with it.
You should let your friend know that it is illegal to be in possesion of an expired military ID.
Also, according to the liquor inspector, a military ID cannot be used to gain entry into a drinking establishment. Only a provincially issued ID may be accepted.
I would not have ID’d any of you though.
I actually used to work in a bar in another province and one of the main reasons for carrying an ID besides showing you are of age is if something happens to you and you need medical assistance we know who you are. If you get pass out, get hurt or do anything else for your safety it is always advised you have an id with you. It used to bug me with all the attitude I got by asking. You probably shouldn’t be leaving your house without ID anyway.
hahahaha I had no idea even prune faces would get denied without id. even me???
mind you I wouldn’t be darkening a dance hall’s doorstep anytime in my foreseeable future.
briggsy good explanation. makes sense. esp those who are older – could faint from all the exertion or from being squeezed into spandex for the first time in decades.
Imagine the legal and financial BS an establishments owner(s) would have to go through if someone was in without proper legal identification. Sure, nothing would happen to the patron, but the business would have to deal with it and it would be more hassle than the old “driving without a drivers license I’ll pop in at DMV within the next couple of days to get the fine reversed” deal that we folks have to deal with.
Try travelling with an expired passport or driving with an expired license… what do you think would happen in those cases?
You’re not supposed to be out without your proper ID anyway. It’s not the bar’s fault that they’re expired. Maybe next time the 48 and 56-year olds can be a little more responsible?
hold the horses here, what’s with all the ‘don’t step out your door without proper id’?
if a bar has to check id to make sure someone is over 18 fine.
if you are driving you have to have your driver’s license on you.
but why the bloody hell should I worry about having id when I go for a walk, or grocery shop, or just stand on main street scratching my ass and farting ‘its a long way to tipperary’? i’m not crossing any borders, driving a vehicle or anything else that is regulated.
hahaha, “it’s a long way to tipperary” ftw
I’ve used expired IDs a number of times to enter a bar, op. It’s allowed as far as i am aware.
Ummm, BatShit. Its not allowed, hence the Bitch.
It’s not?
Ok well i should say that’s sort of stupid. As long as the ID is official then I don’t see why the expiry date has anything to do with it.
I mean, ok. If your license is expired, you can’t drive. If your passport is expired, you can’t cross the border. I get that. Because those are specific tasks that you can only perform if you can prove you are CURRENTLY allowed to perform these tasks.
But it being expired doesn’t make it any less official. It’s still a document that was given to you at one time that proves your identity and date of birth. It doesn’t suddenly stop identifying your existence just because it’s not up to date. Your EXISTENCE, date of birth and face don’t expire. Just your right to drive or travel internationally.
And i maintain i got into a bar once with an expired passport. I guess the bouncer wasn’t on the ball.
BatShit, I agree its stupid especially if its a recently expired ID.
However, it is amazingly easy to duplicate or make some of the older style ID’s. Thats why the law is in place.
In either case, having an expired military ID in your posession is against the QR&O’s (Queen’s Regulations and Orders), and is a chargable offense.
“But it being expired doesn’t make it any less official.”
Um, what?
Seriously? What the fuck do you think expired means?
No. Longer. Valid.
Fuck, I’ve seen it all.
perhaps official isn’t the right word.
if its expired it can’t be used for the purpose for which it was issued, by the issuing organization. fine.
but as id to get into a bar? why not? it has a picture. it has age. it was ‘vetted’ by the issuing organization (csis/dmv/whatever) who actually has the resources to verify that person is that person. so what’s the problem at the bar door? that person’s identity is verified. their age is verified. WTF else does a bar need to know?
How many thousands (millions?) of expired ID’s do you think are floating around out there? Not everyone cuts them up or shreds them.
Yes, it was valid ID for one person at one time, who may or may not be the person holding the card right now. Whether they have ‘other’ stuff on them to back it up or not, it isn’t fucking valid. How hard is that to understand? Quite, I take it.
Direct your complaints to the liquor inspectors and have them explain the problems it causes for the bar if they enter the premises and find patrons without valid/proper identification.
These folks roam around the city and don’t call ahead. Nor do they hesitate to hand out fines when there is non-compliance.
So stop blaming the bar and just be responsible. Take the damn ID if you wanna go shake yer ass where alcohol is served.
I’ll tell you why, Molly. If you get arrested or detained for whatever reason, they WILL NOT let you back on the street without first confirming your ID, because for all they know you could be a fugitive. You don’t want to make that phone call to a friend or relative “hey can you come get my keys, go to my place, find my ID and bring it back to the police station?” It sucks.
Had a friend learn that the hard way. He wasn’t charged but because he couldn’t ID himself, even though he wasn’t driving, they held him until I went to his house and got his ID for him.
The bouncer could lose his job, the bar could lose their license. You really think they’re gonna risk that for any reason? IDs have to be issued every so often for a reason. People’s appearences change over time.
lol, tj, that makes sense, but it would never occur to me to expect to be arrested whenever I walk out my front door.
there’s some part of me that finds it very disturbing that I should be expected to have ‘ID’ on my person at all times.
I don’t leave the house without my wallet, but that’s typically because if I leave the house I’m either driving somewhere or walking somewhere close to purchase something. And in the back of my head I think about that day..