Multi pack beer sold in Restarants for €4.80 per bottle

tallaghtfornia

Went to a Chinese restaurant on Friday ordered a round of drinks for myself and my family the bottles were delivered to our table by a waitress and I said thank you – I looked at the one of the bottles (BUD) and it had on the label part of a multi pack not to be sold separately and the other was a bottle of Coors with the same on the label then I looked at the labels again and the Coors was 275ml and the Bud was 300ml and they were both manufactured in the UK. I called the waitress over and asked to see her drinks pricelist before I called the manager she said they did not have one. I then called the manager and explained to her the situation she was sick when I cooped it she basically gave me a load of rubbish and gave us the round for free. This drink is
Obviously purchased
in the north in a supermarket and they sell it to unsuspecting customers for €4.80 per bottle. So let this be a warning to you all when you purchase alcohol check the labels before you pay

faceman

What difference does that make though? The restaurant is still going to get their alcohol cheaper than they sell it for. They arent doing anything illegal. The content of the bottle is no different than a non multipack beer they could have given you!

Do they have a liquor license?

boredatwork82

I have noticed a few bars doing this also. Does anybody know if there is any legal implications for bars caught doing this?

Evil_Clown

I have also seen this in a few pubs and clubs for miller, bud etc.
'not for individual resale' on the label of the bottle
The only explaination I can think of is that buying boxes from the supermarkets must be cheaper than the wholesalers e.g. when the prices dropped to 17.99 for 24 miller in Dunnes

Jaysoose

Its a piss take selling the coors at 4.80 as i picked up a case of 20x275ml for £8 in asda in downpatrick last time i was home.

pigeonbutler

There are legal implications to not displaying the price list prominently. If there is a price list it may well be the case that the bottles are listed as being 330ml in which case you're getting done.

I presume the only other legal issue might be between the drinks manufacturers and the restaurant. I don't think the consumer can complain about the source of the drink being a multipack.

Rb

Jaysoose wrote: »

Its a piss take selling the coors at 4.80 as i picked up a case of 20x275ml for £8 in asda in downpatrick last time i was home.

Are you seriously comparing the price of booze in a huge supermarket chain in ANOTHER COUNTRY to the price of booze in a restaurant in Dublin? Really? Do you really think that makes any sense?

Jaysoose

Rb wrote: »

Are you seriously comparing the price of booze in a huge supermarket chain in ANOTHER COUNTRY to the price of booze in a restaurant in Dublin? Really? Do you really think that makes any sense?

Its a fair comparison as they most likely bought the beer from the supermarket chain in the other country and are selling it in dublin at dublin prices. Its the 275mls that makes me think this. I could be wrong but i somehow doubt it considering the 'Multi-Pack' label and the size of bottle.

tallaghtfornia

My main points are they never had a list of drink prices displayed legaly they should have with the mil of the bottle and price and also they were selling from a multi pack

i.e

Longneck Beer 330ml 4.80
Lager beer 500ml 5.00

Etc

antoinolachtnai

Selling beer that you bought in a supermarket in the North is a big no-no. I wouldn't do that if I were you (or them, or anybody really).

Greenman

antoinolachtnai wrote: »

Selling beer that you bought in a supermarket in the North is a big no-no. I wouldn't do that if I were you (or them, or anybody really).

Enlight us!!!

alexmcred

I'd say customs and excise would have a lot to say about this.

antoinolachtnai

Yes, there is some rule or other about alcohol bought in other member states being for personal use only, and they are inclined to be very pernickety about it.

Danno

Well, if they are getting it cheaper than buying it off the wholesaler, why not pass on the savings to the customer???

That is where the ripp-off is. Taking extra profits. Hope C&E clean them out.

craichoe

alexmcred wrote: »

I'd say customs and excise would have a lot to say about this.

Indeed, you can purchase an amount of of Alcohol and Tobacco from another EU member state and bring it home, but under no circumstances can you sell it !!

No Duty has been paid on that alcohol in the Republic, if a restaurant or bar was caught doing that they would lose their license to sell alcohol as it is essentially tax evasion.

EDIT: Actually in the UK they take it quite seriously
http://www.visitbritain.co.uk/about-britain/practical-information/customs-and-immigration/eu-customs-allowances.aspx

Alcohol or Tobacco - quantities tolerated

You are particularly likely to be asked questions if you have more than:

* 3200 cigarettes
* 400 cigarillos
* 200 cigars
* 3kg of smoking tobacco
* 110 litres of beer
* 90 litres of wine
* 20 litres of fortified wine (such as port or sherry)
* 10 litres of spirits

Penalties for smuggling

The officer will take into account all the factors of the situation and your explanation. If they conclude the goods are for a commercial purpose they may seize them and any vehicle used to transport them, and may not return them to you. If you are caught smuggling or selling alcohol or tobacco goods they may be seized, and for a serious offence you could get up to seven years in prison.

Cabaal

If they are selling beer then they must have a price list the same as bars and clubs must.

JustAddWater

Another way to tell would be the budweiser being 5%

If it is 5% it most likely came from the north...

311

They're fiddling the books aswell ,if they haven't paid for the beer through the company then they can't count it as sold.

My local chinese takeaway do the same thing with cans of coke they deliver, but they're only soft of course.

Darragh29

Fair play to ya for pulling them on it OP. The problem isn't much to do with where they are sourcing the product as it is to do with the retail cost of alcohol in a pub/restaurant. With the cheap wholesale prices now, you'd be expecting the retail price to drop. I'd have no problem with getting served the drink that you got served, once the retail price reflected the lower cost, but charging 4.80 Euro for something that probably cost around 50-70 cent is just taking the p*ss...

Dave147

alexmcred wrote: »

I'd say customs and excise would have a lot to say about this.

They only care about spirits really..

As long as the bottle is 330ml and the price is reasonable enough I wouldn't have any problem with it. Supermarket beers are much cheaper than they are from suppliers.

craichoe

Dave147 wrote: »

They only care about spirits really..

As long as the bottle is 330ml and the price is reasonable enough I wouldn't have any problem with it. Supermarket beers are much cheaper than they are from suppliers.

Try coming off the boat from france with 200 bottles of beer .... its a huge markup if your selling it at 400% of cost.

Nody

craichoe wrote: »

Try coming off the boat from france with 200 bottles of beer ....

My friend brought over 300 bottles of wine in his car with out problem from France *shrug*. To be fair though it is far easier to claim that you're going to drink 200 bottles of wine(assuming you have a reasonble variation of them)/beer then it is to claim you're going to drink 200 bottles of vodka yourself (even if you varied the vodka bottles ).

pigeonbutler

FREEPHONE 1800-295 295

That's customs tip-off line so feel free to shop them if you're that bitter about it. I forgot about the excise evasion angle in my first post.

Davo D

You've got to watch the aul pour your beer at the table for you and take the bottle away before you've hand a chance to look at it trick too.

darc

Rb wrote: »

Are you seriously comparing the price of booze in a huge supermarket chain in ANOTHER COUNTRY to the price of booze in a restaurant in Dublin? Really? Do you really think that makes any sense?

I was pissed off with Tesco yesterday - they wouldn't provide me with a comfortable chair, nice table, clean glass and a decent bit of heat whilst I drank their €1 bottle of bud. :P

And when I bought some meat they even refused to cook it for me!:D

Lenny

Davo D wrote: »

You've got to watch the aul pour your beer at the table for you and take the bottle away before you've hand a chance to look at it trick too.

Yea I've seen it done many a times. I've always asked to drink from the bottle.
To be quite honest I am sick of this carry on too. buying the multi packs in tesco/dunnes and selling them off for more profit.
It seems to be italian and chinese restaurants doing this too. and the only beer they sell is bud, coors and miller(all supermater specials)
If its printed on the bottle not to be sold seperatly then there must be someone to report this too. as its catching on and even the a few big pubs are starting to do it in the area(tallaght)

jor el

boredatwork82 wrote: »

I have noticed a few bars doing this also. Does anybody know if there is any legal implications for bars caught doing this?

If you report them to the drinks distributor, such as Diagio, then they'll take that very seriously, and could cut off supplies to that pub/restaurant. Selling the multi-pack beers from the supermarket is not something that Diagio want the pubs they supply, doing.

As others have said, if they were buying the beer from outside the Republic, then it's also tax evasion, which can be reported to Revenue or Customs & Excise.

antoinolachtnai

What is your problem with the shop buying from the cheapest supplier (providing they aren't evading tax)? I think you have an inflated idea of how profitable these food businesses actually are.

Linku

It may not necessarily be bought up north, the 24 packs of Bud that Tesco and others have been selling recently are 300ml bottles bottled in the UK

nogoodnamesleft

Came across something similar in a new local "Italian" restaurant in Killarney just before xmas. Ordered 4 cokes, was quiet surprised when cans arrived especially in a restaurant but was even more surprised when they had multipack plasetered across it. Anyway paid the bill, and left.
Was waiting for the other half as she did some clothes shopping about 20mins later when I looked at the receipt as I was curious as to how the meal was so expensive I had paid 11.80 for 4 cans of coke. so each multipack can cost 2.95! I immediately went back to the restaurant and asked for the manager, made a complaint, questioned her on reselling multipack products, got some BS story about limited stock (I used to work in the bar industry in the town and a bars pubs and resturaunts in town share stock if it is indeed limited).
I got a refund of 6 euro but it was the satisfaction that was my goal. Is there any where businesses such as this can be reported?

Sam Vimes

darc wrote: »

I was pissed off with Tesco yesterday - they wouldn't provide me with a comfortable chair, nice table, clean glass and a decent bit of heat whilst I drank their 1 bottle of bud. :P

And when I bought some meat they even refused to cook it for me!:D

:eek: bastards!

Sam Vimes

jor el wrote: »

if they were buying the beer from outside the Republic, then it's also tax evasion, which can be reported to Revenue or Customs & Excise.

How's that then? Are businesses not allowed source products abroad or something?

Or do you mean that if they source it abroad they have to pay customs on it?

Nody

Sam Vimes wrote: »

How's that then? Are businesses not allowed source products abroad or something?

They can buy it abroad but specifically spirits require tax to be paid by businesses in Ireland (and any other non EU goods of course).

Sam Vimes

Nody wrote: »

They can buy it abroad but specifically spirits require tax to be paid by businesses in Ireland (and any other non EU goods of course).

right so

MOH

nogoodnamesleft wrote: »

Came across something similar in a new local "Italian" restaurant in Killarney just before xmas. Ordered 4 cokes, was quiet surprised when cans arrived especially in a restaurant but was even more surprised when they had multipack plasetered across it. Anyway paid the bill, and left.

Ordered a takeaway pizza last weekend, including a 1.5L bottle of coke.
Ended up being charged €3 for a 2L bottle, with the "multipack-not to be sold separately" banner across it.

Scorpio Girl

there's a supermarket in the tallaght area and lots of stock in it has the multi pack sign on it. i refuse to buy stuff in there now.

antoinolachtnai

You have to pay duty on wine and beer as well.

Blisterman

MOH wrote: »

Ordered a takeaway pizza last weekend, including a 1.5L bottle of coke.
Ended up being charged €3 for a 2L bottle, with the "multipack-not to be sold separately" banner across it.

So you got an extra 500ml free of charge?

Poor you.

I used to work for an Irish Ferry Company that operated from France to Ireland.

One off the crew who was on-board management had a nice little earner for himself, by purchasing loads off Wines & Spirits, to put it into perspective, you are talking about several off those Milk trolleys loaded to the gills which were offloaded every second day when we arrived back to Ireland.

His customers ranged from restaurants & bars.

This has been going on for years, I know truck drivers that did the same.

When drink is taxed/controlled and bonded like it is in Ireland, you are going to get this happening and always will.

I love food, though in Ireland it is a luxury or you have to pay loads to get something which in italy / France / Spain you will get a far greater service in a service station off a motorway than here in a modestly priced resturant.

After giving years working in Catereing, in Ireland / France / Spain.

I would never eat out in Ireland, the hardest thing to do these days in a kitchen in Ireland is to chop the parsley as everything else is like what you bloody get in a supermarket, yet people will still pay stupid figures for a one plate dish in this country and think that they are getting something special.

Who's for some Tapas in my place tommorow evening...

Sorry..... Rant Over....

rubadub

If tax was paid I see no problem.

jor el wrote: »

If you report them to the drinks distributor, such as Diagio, then they'll take that very seriously, and could cut off supplies to that pub/restaurant. Selling the multi-pack beers from the supermarket is not something that Diagio want the pubs they supply, doing.

I would not want a place I frequent to be cut off. And I would not want other people to have to pay even more for their beers just because of me.

antoinolachtnai wrote: »

What is your problem with the shop buying from the cheapest supplier (providing they aren't evading tax)?

Exactly. I see no problem

MOH wrote: »

Ended up being charged €3 for a 2L bottle, with the "multipack-not to be sold separately" banner across it.

Well in future you could try asking for one without the mulipack banner. Of course it could cost you €3.50 in that case, if they want to make the same profit...

Lord Nikon

Where I work there are Coke can vending machines, and it vended my a can of coke with "Not to be sold sperately" on the side. Now, this is a Coke Branded machine, with silly grinning idiots on the front, holding cans of coke.

Anyway, i rang Coca Cola, and as far as they were concerned it was all above board. They didn't own or stock the vending machine, so it was out of their hands.

seanybiker

My local is doing it aswell witht he bottles of bud,miller and coors. To be honest it doesnt bother me at all because I dont drink bud,miller or coors, I just dont drink bottles at all. Im not gonna complain about it, I dont want the place shut down or whatever just because their making a big mark up on something I dont drink. If I ever get a pint or a shot with "not to be sold seperately" on it, then I'll complain .

MOH

Blisterman wrote: »

So you got an extra 500ml free of charge?

Poor you.

Eh, no, I got a larger bottle than I ordered, and I was charged extra for it.
They don't even sell 2L bottlesd, according to their website, but they're obviously making a bigger profit by splitting up multipacks.

astrofool

Then you should have complained about being charged more than the agreed price, and got a refund/refused to pay.

I doubt there is anything illegal about selling multi pack items singly, and if there was, it's between the supplier of the item and the shop/restaurant.

mazdagirl

I have been into two pubs that are selling bottles from multipacks apart from the fact they still charging full price for cheap bottles, the bottles are smaller then the ones they get from the normal supplier I complained and got meself 2free drinks

run_Forrest_run

Blisterman wrote: »

So you got an extra 500ml free of charge?

Poor you.

for a mod I thought you could have come up with something more, eh, well something more useful!

If I was in a pub, restaurant and I paid full price for a soft drink and I saw it was coming from a multi-pack container I would send it back and demand a refund. The point is the greedy seller is availing of an offer from the producer and not passing on this offer to the consumer in any way.

A lot of these multi-pack items are aimed to sell direct to the seller and not to be bought by a pub etc and for them to sell them on at their inflated prices, you don't see the general public allowed into cash and carry outlets to buy their stuff at trade do you?

rubadub

run_Forrest_run wrote: »

The point is the greedy seller is availing of an offer from the producer and not passing on this offer to the consumer in any way.

He could well be passing it on, and would have charged more for a non-multi pack beer if forced to.

run_Forrest_run wrote: »

you don't see the general public allowed into cash and carry outlets to buy their stuff at trade do you?

A lot of stuff is far more expensive in cash & carries than supermakrtes, nobody I know even bothers getting loans of cards anymore. I never understood why they did not let the public in if they were going to pay VAT, maybe have a minimum order value if they want to stop browsers.

Are there any cheap cash & carry type places open to the public? like in the US with massive trolleys etc.

When I hear that ad saying "cash & carry kitchens", expensive comes into my head.

We know the manager in our local and sometimes get bottles of vodka going home, which we return the next day/week. He was shocked to hear what we were paying, he was buying bottles of vodka in the wholesalers and paying €2 more than us.

Cabaal

run_Forrest_run wrote: »

for a mod I thought you could have come up with something more, eh, well something more useful!

Blisterman is not a mod of this forum and as such is a user the same as you and the same as me, I don't see why you even need to bring it up that he's a mod.

run_Forrest_run

Cabaal wrote: »

Blisterman is not a mod of this forum and as such is a user the same as you and the same as me, I don't see why you even need to bring it up that he's a mod.

I know he's not a mod in this forum but as discussed in a previous thread somewhere, mods are supposed to be bastions of peace and compassion:rolleyes:

Vic_08

run_Forrest_run wrote: »

If I was in a pub, restaurant and I paid full price for a soft drink and I saw it was coming from a multi-pack container I would send it back and demand a refund. The point is the greedy seller is availing of an offer from the producer and not passing on this offer to the consumer in any way.

What difference does it make? As long as the price you pay is the same as on the menu and the drink is the same type and amount then where it was sourced is of no matter. You are still paying the same price for the same thing, if you found out that the owner of the restaurant had won a million cans of coke in a competition would you then demand he only serve you a can he purchased from a supplier and provide you a receipt as proof?

The only possible illegality I can see with selling multipack items individually is that they often are devoid of the legally required ingredient and nutrition data which would have been on the multipack box only. I don't think this would be an issue with restaurants/bars though as they are not required to provide this information, it would only apply to retailers.

rubadub

Vic_08 wrote: »

The only possible illegality I can see with selling multipack items individually is that they often are devoid of the legally required ingredient and nutrition data which would have been on the multipack box only.

Also I think the weights/volumes are not as strict. I often get half empty bags of crisps in mulitpacks, while other packs might be jam packed, over all it averages out correct. I expect it is put on a quicker production line that fills packs to a wider tolerance.

I have never big variance in volume with mulitpack beers. Also alcohol products do not need to have any nutritional info (which I think is crazy TBH)