Sale of alcohol to minors: nearly nine out of ten supermarkets are breaking the law, according to an association

Nearly nine out of ten supermarkets are breaking the law by selling alcohol to minors , according to tests conducted in Nantes, Angers, and Rennes, the Addictions France association, which called on Thursday, July 3, for "truly dissuasive sanctions" and frequent inspections by the State. Of 90 establishments of the Auchan, Lidl, Leclerc, Diagonal, U Express, Intermarché, Carrefour, Monoprix, Franprix, and G20 brands tested in April and May, 86% sold alcohol to minors, according to the association. Compared to 93% during a similar operation in 2021.

"Despite the formal ban on the sale of alcohol to minors and the State's commitment to better enforce it, access to alcohol remains very easy for minors in 2025," Myriam Savy, head of advocacy at Addictions France, told Agence France-Presse (AFP). For these tests, minors went, accompanied by a bailiff, to supermarkets, some of which had "already been the subject of reports." Only 8% of establishments asked for ID to verify customers' ages.

Article L.3342-1 of the Public Health Code specifies that "the person who delivers the drink requires the customer to provide proof of their majority" via a "systematic act" , "not conditioned by simple doubt about the physical appearance of the customer" , recalls Addictions France.

These test purchases "were systematically carried out in the middle of the day, during the week" , most often at times of "low traffic, with few, if any, customers at the checkout" , specifies the association to debunk in advance the argument of "pressure linked to the crowd" to justify the lack of age control. In detail, of the 25 Carrefour stores tested, only two refused the sale, two also at the 11 Lidl stores tested, as well as within the seven stores of the Coopérative U group visited. Among the other brands: only one E.Leclerc store out of six refused the sale to the minor, only one Intermarché store out of seven, no Monoprix out of the six tested and no Auchan, out of the two.

In the summer of 2023, the association tested 42 bars and fast food outlets in Loire-Atlantique in urban and rural areas: only one refused to sell after verifying the minor's age. Its findings in 2023-2024 led to the opening of 37 legal proceedings, the first of which "will not be pleaded until December 9, 2025 ," a delay which "reinforces a feeling of impunity and trivializes the transgression of the law," judges Addictions France.

Faced with the "general ineffectiveness of the current regulatory system" and the "Charter of Responsible Commitments" signed by large retailers (Carrefour, Auchan, Lidl, Monoprix, etc.) in 2019, in partnership with the Federation of Commerce and Distribution, the Addictions France association is calling for systematic random checks by the State and "truly dissuasive" sanctions.

With fines reaching 2% of the company's annual turnover if it is less than 100,000 euros, and 10% from 500,000 euros according to a graduated sanctions system reminiscent of those of environmental or competition law.