FLORIDA ALCOHOL SERVER COURSE

Learn2Serve now offers a full solution for insurance liability relief for alcohol-serving establishments in the state of Florida.

Establishments whose servers take the Learn2Serve 3-hour Florida alcohol safety course and stay current with the 1-hour refresher course may eligible to receive insurance discounts, and Learn2Serve’s training also offers mitigating benefits if an incident does occur.

Learn2Serve has a relationship with many large insurance companies such as USLI and Centrex, so interested managers should check out www.learn2serve.com and contact their insurance companies to see if they can receive insurance discounts and increased liability protection.

How to Minimize Liability in the Texas Hospitality Industry

Until 1987, Texas law did not impose liability on establishments who “over-served” patrons. The statute that changed that is known as the “Dram Shop Act”. This law dictates that an establishment could be held liable for civil damages on proof that:

1. At the time that the provider sold or served the alcohol, it was apparent that to the provider that the recipient was obviously intoxicated to the extent he/she presented a clear danger to him/herself and/or others, and
2. The intoxication of that individual proximately caused the damages suffered.

In addition to this civil liability, the Dram Shop Act also provides that the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission can revoke the alcohol permit of a provider who violates the provisions of the statute.

That being said, selling alcohol can be risky for an establishment, but the Dram Shop Act does provide for a “safe harbor.” Under this “safe harbor,” and establishment is protected even if its employee’s actions violate the act. To be protected, and establishment must meet three requirements:

1. The employer required its employees to attend a TABC approved “seller training program.”
2. The employee(s) in question actually attended the training, and
3. The employer did not directly or indirectly encourage the employee to violate the act.

In a recent interpretation of the statute, the Texas Supreme Court further defined the burden of proof on the each of the three elements, and clarified the standard for a finding on the third. The court concluded that the defendant (provider) retains the burden of proof for the first two elements, and the plaintiff for the third.

At least 42 states have statutes similar to the Texas Dram Shop Act, although some states do not permit the intoxicated person to sue for his/her own injuries, while some others impose a cap on the amount of damages.

The best thing for an establishment to do is:

1. Be up to date on current laws in their state(s)/area(s) of operation. Consult your legal representation.
2. Make sure employees understand the policies of the governing bodies of said state(s). This can be most effectively done through state-approved seller training.
3. Take advantage of any liability relief offered through the statutes of governance. The money saved by avoiding litigation will more than offset the potential money lost by cutting patrons off when they have had questionable amounts of alcohol.

There are many different companies offering alcohol training for servers, and they do so through many different mediums. The traditional forum is in a proctored, live setting with an instructor physically on the premises. Online solutions, however, are becoming increasingly popular in the hospitality industry due to their time-saving, convenient, and cost-effective means of delivery. Check out Learn2Serve for your online hospitality training needs as they have something for pretty much every state.

Important Food Safety Bulletin

The Texas State Department of Health Services and the Food and Drug Administration are urging consumers to avoid eating products that contain raw Roma, red plum or round red tomatoes.

Since mid-April, 21 cases of Salmonella poisoning have been associated with the consumption of these kinds of tomatoes. Cases have been confirmed in Harris, Fort Bend, Dallas, Tarrant, Hays, and Cameron counties.

Although, the source has yet to be identified, restaurants are taking extra precautions to insure the safety of their customers. Many restaurants have removed raw tomatoes products entirely from their menu and others are working with their suppliers to resolve the issue.

Information on safe handling of produce can be found at www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/prodsafe.html.

Tomato consumer page can be found at http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/tomatoes.html

Updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/