Is it just us or is being turned away at your neighbourhood bar for
having an expired ID the norm these days? HRM Police say it’s not
required that ID be accepted if it is expired, but agree that for all
intents and purposes, a piece of ID means simply photo, birth date and
address.
The expiry date seems overly picky, as the purpose of checking ID at
bars is to ensure that the patron-to-be is 19 years old and over, is it
not? Or is current identification required before you can put a beer in
your hand at any age in this province?
At the Nova Scotia Liquor Commission, a helpful staff member
concurs, before transferring me to the Alcohol and Gaming Authority.
“My sister was turned away and she’s 62. It seems to be the bars
lately. This is not the first call we’ve had.”
Darlene Hancock, senior compliance officer at Alcohol and Gaming for
over 20 years says, “Yes, we are cracking down on underage drinking.
There are a lot of fakes. If you and your friends are looking very
young, you should go to Access Nova Scotia and get a current ID card.
Your ID expires like any card, like a VISA.”
But what if you and your friends aren’t looking very young? Tough
cookies, grandma. Mark Henderson, who coordinates security guards at
Source Security, says, “It’s kind of a standard at the clubs. There
wasn’t a memo, but we always have to check. An expired ID is illegal.”
This article appears in Oct 22-28, 2009.
HAHA. 62! Now that is flattering. Maybe the bouncer was just trying to get her number….
“It’s kind of a standard at the clubs. There wasn’t a memo, but we always have to check. An expired ID is illegal.” what a fucking liar.
We were just at Reflections downtown with Quebec health cards and we were turned away. Apparently, the NS government only accepts drivers licenses and passports from Quebec residents, disregarding the fact that many Quebecers possess neither and can use their health card as a piece of government identification everywhere else (including international airports). The card has a photo, name, date of birth, and signature, I don’t really see the problem. I’ve been going to that bar since I was 19, and to be turned away was a bit of a slap in the face. If the Alcohol and Gaming Commission is so worried about underage drinking, why don’t they fund some recreation programs or all ages clubs rather than hiring new bureaucrats to design and implement lackluster policies? This makes me rethink telling people to visit Halifax as tourists. Total disrespect.
Who wants to go to Infections anyways !!! Probably a good thing and saved them from staf infections from the flooded toilet water running onto the dance floor . Oh but your ID is expired!! The current ID holders get the privledge of snorting speed and coke off the tables and blowing weed in the old “smoke room ” . Yea great place!!