8.3 Dealing with Prohibited Persons & Managing Safety

Who Is a Prohibited Person?

Under the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, a prohibited person is someone a licensee or manager must not sell or supply alcohol to, and must not allow to remain on the premises. NZQA US 16705 PC 3.6 requires you to deal with them effectively while maintaining the safety of customers and staff. Three categories:

1. Intoxicated persons — s252 forbids allowing them to remain
2. Minors — a minor may not be in a restricted area at all, and may be in a supervised area only when accompanied by a parent or guardian. Section 244 makes it an offence for the minor (fine up to $1,000) and section 245 makes it an offence for the licensee or manager who permits it (fine up to $2,000); both are infringement offences under s260
3. Disorderly persons — s253 forbids allowing violent, quarrelsome, insulting, or disorderly conduct

For each, the manager must act. The question is how — and the answer is a graded, safety-first response.

The Graded Response

Use the lowest force that works. Escalate only when the lower rung fails.

Verbal Communication

The first technique is always verbal. Speak calmly, clearly, and respectfully. Give a reason. Examples:

• "I can't serve you another — I think you've had enough tonight."
• "I need you to leave now — you're being disorderly and I have other customers."
• "You're not allowed in tonight — you were trespassed last week."

Avoid escalatory language — "you're drunk", "mate, sort yourself out", "piss off". Do not issue ultimata you cannot enforce. De-escalation is the goal: a patron who leaves on a verbal request is a successful outcome.

Body Language

Your body matters as much as your words:

• Non-threatening stance — open, side-on slightly, hands visible
• Give space — don't crowd, don't corner, leave an exit
• Pair up — staff in pairs present authority and a witness; a lone server is vulnerable
• Don't touch — unless removal by security is warranted

Most patrons read a calm, paired, confident posture and adjust their behaviour. Most read a cornering, hands-on approach as a challenge.

Licensed Crowd Controllers (Security)

For late-night and large venues, trained crowd controllers (door/security staff) are the third rung. They handle refusal of entry and physical removal. The legal requirement: every crowd controller must hold a Certificate of Approval (COA) issued under the Private Security Personnel and Private Investigators Act 2010. Working without a COA is an offence (fine up to $20,000). COAs are valid for 5 years and issued by the Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority. A bar that uses unlicensed security exposes itself to enforcement and loses the protection that properly licensed staff provide.

Trespass Notices

Where a patron is persistent, banned, or likely to return, the manager can issue a trespass notice under the Trespass Act 1980. The notice:

• Warns the person to leave and not return for up to 2 years (s4(4))
• Can be given orally or in writing
• Should state the reason (intoxication, disorder, violence)
• Makes it an offence to return within the period — penalty up to $1,000 fine or 3 months' imprisonment

Use trespass for the banned patron, the repeat offender, or the person removed for violence who is likely to come back. Keep a written record and a copy of any written notice in the incident book.

Police Intervention

Police are the escalation point when the situation exceeds the manager's powers: violence or threats, refusal to leave, drug offences, serious disorder, or a patron who is too intoxicated to be safely moved by staff. Call 111. The duty manager should know the local station and the after-hours licensing inspector. Police have powers of arrest, search, and closure that staff do not.

The Incident Book

Every incident — refusal, removal, trespass, police call — goes in the incident book:

• Time and date
• Patron description
• Signs observed (for intoxication, by SCAB category)
• Action taken and by whom
• Witnesses (staff and other patrons)
• Police involvement (officer name, event number)

The incident book is legal protection. It is the evidence that the manager took reasonable steps (s252(3)/s253(3) defence). It also reveals patterns — the same patron trespassed three times, the same staff conflict, the same busy hour — and lets the venue fix them.

Maintaining Safety

The overriding principle is safety first. Prioritise the safety of staff and customers over recovering alcohol, winning an argument, or protecting stock. Specifically:

• Remove the threat, do not provoke it
• Use the team — never handle a violent patron alone
• Know the evacuation plan and the panic/duress procedures
• Do not pursue a patron into the street; once they leave, the threat has gone
• Offer the intoxicated person a place of safety or safe transport — do not dump them on the footpath

Related Enactment: Māori Community Development Act 1962

NZQA's US 16705 guidance lists the Māori Community Development Act 1962 among the legislation a licence controller should be aware of. It is the Act that established the New Zealand Māori Council and the Māori Wardens, who have a recognised role in the community-focused, host-responsible licensed environment. The LCQ expects you to recognise it as a related enactment; you are not required to recite its operational detail.

Exam Traps

• Safety first. An option that says "recover the drink first" or "argue the point" is wrong.
• Graded response. Verbal then body language then security then trespass then police. Do not jump to police for a first verbal refusal.
• COA is mandatory for crowd controllers — under the PSPPI Act 2010, not the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act.
• Trespass = up to 2 years, oral or written.
• Always record in the incident book. No entry = no defence evidence.