Licensees obliged to ensure safety

While the focus of attention at present is on the rather patchy roll-out of the Security Industry Authority national licensing scheme for door staff, attention may have been diverted from the ongoing responsibilities of the licensee himself.

Proprietors of entertainment establishments have different ways of dealing with the problem of sudden violence. Everyone knows it exists, and that nightclubs are particularly vulnerable. Some try to head it off by carefully vetting those who enter the club, or ensuring that the "profile" of the establishment deters those who are looking for a confrontation.

Many more feel that the presence of one or two ex-tremely tough licensed door-men will deter any entrant who might contemplate causing a disturbance.

As far as the law is concerned, the licensee of the premises is required under the terms of the Licensing Act to ensure that no "drunkenness, or violent, quarrelsome or disorderly conduct" takes place on the premises. If anyone is found to be drunk on the premises by the police, it is for the holder of the licence to prove to the court that he took all reasonable steps to prevent it.

So, if a group of drunken customers smash up the bar or cause a loud riot, and a neighbour calls out the police, you may not just have to pay for the damage but also for the drunkenness.

Because of the obligation on the licensee not to permit this type of behaviour, the law also gives him a power to prevent it. The following section of the Act allows the licensee to refuse admission, or to expel from the premises "...any person who is drunk, violent, quarrelsome or disorderly" or whose presence in the premises might expose the licensee to prosecution under the Act.

Here is where there may be differences of interpretation. Refusing admission is fairly straightforward ­ as a licensee, or even as a proprietor, you are not obliged to admit persons to the premises if you do not want them. If there is a policy of banning large groups of young men, then you are entitled to enforce that on the door.

Remember that door staff may be acting as your agents and that if they receive instructions from you to eject someone by force, any injury sustained by the ejected person can result in legal action against you. There have been too many examples of this in the licensed trade for you to be at all complacent. Take care.