News

Florida’s Potatopia deters underage drinking with Intellicheck’s Age ID

June 29, 2017

Potatopia's Broward County, Florida restaurant is using Intellicheck's Age ID to prevent the sale of alcoholic beverages to underage customers, according to a press release. The fast casual restaurant's employees are using the technology to scan driver licenses and other forms of identification to detect altered and fake IDs.

Age ID reads the data encoded on driver licenses and government issued IDs, authenticating the ID and age information in real-time. It can be deployed on mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets, and can be integrated with point-of-sale solutions.

Age ID draws on a comprehensive proprietary database, updated on an ongoing basis, to ensure ID authentication is timely and accurate. It provides a solution to the problem of spotting fake and altered IDs with its ability to read more than 250 unique DMV barcode formats from every U.S. state and populated territories, all Canadian provinces, and all Mexican states where driver licenses include 2-D barcodes.

Potatopia franchise owner Bill Bulmer says his Tower Shops location in Davie, Florida is surrounded by five universities in addition to numerous residential communities. For Bulmer, Age ID will make an important difference. He said it is not just about making sure his business is in compliance with laws that prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages to minors. He focuses on personal and corporate responsibility as well.

"I feel a personal responsibility to the customers and communities we serve," he said in the press release. "It's about doing the right things in the right ways. We have such a great response and wonderful customers from our college community and our neighborhoods and we want them to know that we care about them, their potential and their future. This is something our company feels strongly about, too."

Bulmer worries that young people don't understand how easily bad choices can lead to terrible outcomes.

"I have a personal perspective on the risks of drunk driving," he said. ‘When I was 16 years old, I was run over by a drunk driver and my back was broken in three places."

Intellicheck CEO Dr. William Roof said Age ID will help Potatopia achieve its goals.

"We are excited about our partnership with Potatopia and believe we offer the best solution to helping them meet their legal and social obligations," Roof said. "We look forward to growing our partnership as Potatopia implements its plans for nationwide advancement. We are also very pleased by the expanding adoption of our industry leading technology solution in the hospitality market.

"We understand the difficult challenges facing the restaurant industry in efforts to keep alcoholic beverages out of the hands of minors. With the proliferation of sophisticated fake IDs, employees have a hard time spotting them. This is a safety challenge that raises compliance concerns for businesses that must adhere to the laws and regulations governing the sale of age-restricted products. We are confident Age ID will make a significant difference for Potatopia as it has for so many businesses across the country that face the problem of spotting fake credentials used by minors to make illegal alcohol purchases," he said.