Shoppers lose points under cheap booze ban

Shoppers at Sainsbury’s supermarket will no longer be able to collect reward points on spirits due to recently passed UK laws on “cheap” alcohol.

Sainsbury’s shoppers can no longer collect Nectar points on spirits due to “complex” new laws banning the sale of “cheap” alcohol

Under the new legislation, which bans the sale of below-cost alcohol, spirits will no longer count towards the supermarket’s Nectar points scheme.

The scheme gives shoppers points when they spend money in-store that can then be used as a discount on future purchases.

According to The Telegraph, Sainsbury’s has said that the move was a response to the “complex” new laws banning the sale of alcohol at below the cost of their tax.

Reports have suggested that the ruling, which was designed to discourage excessive alcohol consumption, is “inadvertently penalising responsible consumers”.

The Home Office revealed in February this year that it would be banning the sale of such products before the start of the World Cup.

New legislation states that a 750ml bottle of vodka cannot be sold for less than £10.16, with the exemption of duty-free sales on ships, aircraft and in airports.

The Home Office has claimed that Sainsbury’s move has “gone above” what was required by law since reward schemes do not count towards minimum price.

Sainsbury’s responded by telling The Telegraph that its exclusion of spirits from the Nectar Scheme was in the “interests of simplicity”.

“We’ve tried to implement the government’s complex new legislation on alcohol pricing in a way which keeps it as simple for customers and colleagues to understand as possible,” a spokesman told the newspaper.

“In some areas we have gone beyond the legal minimum in the interests of simplicity and ensuring we always trade in a fully compliant and legal way.”