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NOS News•today, 06:21
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Since the new Alcohol Act came into effect last year, the prices of alcoholic beverages are hardly used in supermarkets and other physical stores. But online there are still big discounts on beer and wine. According to STAP, the Netherlands Institute for Alcohol Policy, this violates the law.
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More than a year ago, the new Alcohol Act had to end offers such as ‘1+1 free’ or ‘three bottles for the price of two’. Since then, discounts may be a maximum of 25 percent.
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Stack discount
“At many online stores, customers initially receive that 25 percent discount immediately, but with extra discount codes it can go up to 30 or 40 percent,” says director Wim van Dalen of STAP. This concerns, for example, a personal discount code, or a code that can be copied from special websites.
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By ‘stacking’ the benefits, people can still exceed the statutory maximum discount, says Van Dalen. “And especially for smart young people, it is a breeze to find the right online stores with those extra discounts. The crates of beer are even delivered to your home. How easy do you want it to be?”
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NOS
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Enforcement should be taken much more seriously, believes Van Dalen: “We all want to limit the alcohol problem. It has been proven that low prices are an important factor in a lot of drinking. It is important to tackle that problem, but then enforcement must be in order. I understand that there may be too few people at the supervisor, but then priorities have to be set differently.”
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The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA), which monitors compliance with the rules, notes that “entrepreneurs are creative and look for boundaries”. Supervision and enforcement of online sales can be difficult, says a spokesperson. “But we are taking it seriously. If we find a violation during an inspection, we will take action against it with a fine.”
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