Digital proof of age is available as a means of age verification in shops, for age restricted products except alcohol, but the rules are changing in the coming weeks to allow digital proof of age for alcohol sales.
Customers will be able to use their smartphone to prove their age, with their details being checked by a registered Digital Verification Service. The change will allow all age restricted products to be purchased with digital ID. According to the trade body the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS), this is likely to result in far wider adoption of digital ID by customers and retailers alike. The service will remain optional however, with retailers having to decide whether to adopt digital ID verification in their businesses.
Government guidance on digital proof of age schemes recommends that digital ID providers make their schemes interoperable, but this is not a requirement. The ACS has asked that schemes be interoperable for customers and retailers to have any chance of being successful.
ACS chief executive Ed Woodall said: “Digital proof of age has the potential to reduce friction for retailers and customers alike when purchasing age restricted products, but this will only be the case if taking part in the scheme requires a single point of entry. Retailers should only have to contract with one Digital Verification Service which accepts all verified forms of digital ID, and customers should only have to use one form of digital ID that is accepted at all retailers. It is crucial that this fundamental feature of the scheme is adopted across the board.”
Background
Proof of age matters in terms of staff safety because staff denying tobacco products and alcohol to the under-age has long been one of the main causes of verbal and physical abuse by customers. A recent Retail People Index, from the charity the Retail Trust and a consulting firm AlixPartners, shows overall well-being scores rose to 62 out of 100 between January and March this year. This up from 57 at the end of 2025, a year in which well-being had continued to deteriorate, the charity said. The generational tobacco ban meanwhile passed into law by the Rishi Sunak Conservative Government is coming in, another potential flashpoint in-store.
Chris Brook-Carter, chief executive of the Retail Trust, said: “Retail workers are still battling job insecurity, high living costs and too many incidents of crime and abuse, and this is impacting those working on the frontline of retail the most, but the help they are receiving from their employers appears to have improved this year.
“This rise in overall wellbeing and relationships between managers and staff is testament to a renewed investment in leaders and the impact this can have on everyone’s ability to turn up to work feeling happier, healthier and more productive. Retail employers must now build on this great work by ensuring those in stores and distribution centres get even more targeted support to turn around still worryingly low levels of wellbeing.”
