If you serve alcoholic beverages to guests at your home, or even allow them to bring their own alcohol, you can be held responsible if anything goes wrong. Laws and penalties vary by location, so make sure you are aware of policies in your area.
Here are some tips to help you protect yourself and your guests:
- If you serve or allow alcohol, make sure that no one under the legal age limit drinks on your property. It doesn’t matter if their parents say it’s okay, you can be held criminally liable as well as negligent if anyone is injured as a result.
- Make sure your guests don’t overdo it. Be prepared to call a cab, offer a ride, have a sober friend drive, or invite an inebriated guest to stay the night if necessary. Friends don’t let friends drive drunk, and neither does the law. You can be held responsible if there is an accident. It makes sense to either refrain from drinking yourself or to ask at least a couple of people to act as designated drivers if necessary.
- It helps to serve heartier foods instead of just snacks when people are drinking. People tend to drink less when they feel fuller. It may also help them keep from becoming inebriated so quickly, but don’t rely on food alone to prevent people from overdoing it.
- Consider hiring a bartender. You don’t necessarily have to book a service. Even if you know someone that works at a local bar, it may be worth it to pay him or her a few bucks to serve drinks and keep an eye on things. Someone who tends bar has more experience watching for signs of drunkenness and determining when someone has had enough. He or she can let you know if a guest is overdoing it.
*The only surefire way to prevent alcohol related problems is to avoid serving it at all.