Teaching Businesses to Identify Problem Drinkers

• Two underage customers show fake IDs and try to buy alcohol
• One of your  restaurant customers has been drinking all night, is getting belligerent and  wants to buy another drink
•  Someone who’s clearly intoxicated tries to buy beer at a convenience store

 These are some of the sticky situations that regularly come up for restaurant owners, as well as managers and sales staff at businesses that sell alcohol.

To help them figure out what to do, Ardsley SAYF (Supporting Ardsley’s Youth and Families) offered a special training session Wednesday to about 18 local businesses at the Ardsley fire house.

 The focus was on giving businesses information on how to check IDs—including ways to determine if underage customers are trying to use fake IDs, learning how to question whether an adult is buying the alcohol for an underage drinker, and knowing the signs for  when someone has clearly had too much to drink.

 The training was provided at no cost to the community through a grant from New York State’s Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services. Ann Marie Linden, from Tarrytown’s Student Assistance Services, a non-profit organization, ran the day-long program. Participants who completed the program—and passed an assessment—would receive a certificate stating that they are TIPS (Training for Intervention Procedure) certified, which is valid for three years.

 “We’re giving you guidance for safe and responsible serving and selling,” said Ann Marie Linden. “We’ll give you tools for how to assess people who are intoxicated and how to check IDS. You’re responsible for what you served them. You can be held responsible for selling and serving. Your responsibility is not to serve them when they’re intoxicated.We want to protect you as establishments.”

Some of the problem signs may be obvious, like someone who stumbles or becomes loud, verbally abusive or overly friendly or aggressive. Some situations are less obvious, like an older customer who purchases alcohol in a store, and hands it to an underage person in the parking lot.

SAYF, which was formed as a village committee nearly two years ago, after a survey at Ardsley High School showed that there was significant alcohol use among students, wanted to offer the training to help businesses deal with challenging situations and prevent underage drinking. The coalition includes parents, school personnel, local businesses and police.

“We see this as helping the community to be safer,” said Theresa Del Grosso, coordinator of the Ardsley SAYF Coalition.

Some of the businesses that participated included Pumpernickel’s, La Catena, Golden Wok Café, Bubba’s, Ardsley Pizzeria and Mina’s, and stores like DeCicco’s and CVS, among others

For Victoria DeFillipis, who works at Captain’s Wine & Spirits, the training was a way “to learn about selling."

"It’s useful,” she said

Diego Ramirez, a manager at DeCicco’s, also found the information helpful.

“I always tell kids to check for IDs,” he said. “Learning about the IDs from another state—it’s a little scary.”

Learn more about TIPS training and certifications here. 

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