Bulletin 24-10: Updates to liquor delivery requirements

Last updated on August 21, 2024

Who's impacted

This is a new requirement for the following liquor licences: 

  • Liquor Primary
  • Food Primary
  • Licensee Retail Store
  • Rural Licensee Retail Store
  • Wine Store
  • Manufacturer with on-site store endorsement

What's changing

Liquor licensees must ensure any individual delivering liquor on their behalf is Serving It Right (SIR) certified, including employees or third-party delivery drivers.

When a licensee wants to use a third-party delivery service to deliver liquor, the licensee should confirm:

  • the delivery service provider requires their drivers that deliver liquor are SIR certified
  • the delivery service only sends liquor orders to drivers that are SIR certified
  • the delivery service provider ensures drivers are familiar with the additional terms and conditions for delivery drivers (e.g., not delivering to intoxicated persons and complying with age verification requirements)

Once the licensee confirms these measures are in place, they do not have to check every driver’s SIR certification when orders are picked up for delivery.

Licensees should ensure the SIR requirement for delivery drivers is documented in their agreements with third-party delivery service providers. However, licensees are not required to keep SIR records for third-party delivery drivers.

Common carriers (e.g., Canada Post, FedEx) are exempt from the requirement to be SIR certified.

Additionally, delivery services are not required to deliver liquor on the same day it is purchased.

Previously, only Food Primary and Liquor Primary licensees selling liquor with a meal for delivery were required to confirm SIR certification for delivery providers. This public safety requirement creates consistency across all licence classes offering liquor delivery. 

Terms and Conditions

The updates can be found in the: 

Helpful information for licensees

Most delivery service providers already require their drivers to be SIR certified. Generally, their online platform stores the driver’s SIR certification and only pushes orders that include liquor to drivers with valid SIR certification (meaning SIR that has been verified by the company and is not expired).

However, it is the licensee’s ultimate responsibility to confirm the third-party delivery service has these measures in place for their drivers because they hold the liquor licence.

For record keeping, licensees are not required to keep SIR records for third-party delivery drivers because they are not employees of the licensee.

Helpful information for delivery service providers and delivery drivers

Delivery drivers can get SIR certified online at: www.responsibleservicebc.gov.bc.ca 

Unlicensed delivery service providers are not required to deliver liquor on the same day it is purchased. However, delivery service providers must not keep a stock of liquor in anticipation of future orders. The customer must place the order before the delivery service provider can purchase or pick up the order for delivery.  

Disclaimer

Bulletins are for general information and may not apply to all situations. Bulletins do not constitute legal advice nor are they a comprehensive statement of the legal obligations that arise under the Liquor Control and Licensing Act, Cannabis Control and Licensing Act, regulations, or any other applicable laws.

When interpreting and applying the information contained in the Bulletins, you are encouraged to seek advice from your professional advisors as appropriate in the circumstances.

Questions

If you have questions about this policy change, email  LCRBLiquorPolicy@gov.bc.ca