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Published: 25 June 2022

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Linda's son bought 11 bottles of vodka in his final 10 days. She's now pushing for changes to liquor licensing laws  22 Jun 2022 

"We've got this massive drinking culture, just like America's got the gun culture, but we don't see it the same…But how many are we losing to that culture? And we're letting it happen. "We'll say, 'America, put down your guns'; here, we're not prepared to change at all, we're not prepared to put down our beers or our vodkas because there's too much money involved."

The mother of a Melbourne man who died of alcohol toxicity is pushing for changes to liquor licensing laws and for greater scrutiny for people who sell alcohol to problem drinkers.

Key points:

• In Victoria, liquor licensing laws are supposed to stop bars and bottle shops from serving anyone who is intoxicated
• There are fewer than 50 inspectors monitoring almost 25,000 licensed venues across Victoria
• There was an almost 30 per cent increase in alcohol retail sales from 2019 to 2021

Ms Smart claims he was intoxicated when he made the purchase, and not for the first time.

"He was very, very drunk. He came home with a bottle," she told 7.30.

"I said to him, 'Ashley, why? Why did you buy it?' And he says, 'Mum, they sell it to me. They don't care.'

"And I left him about half past four. And he turned his computer off at six o'clock and he never woke up."

She found him in his flat days later.

"He hadn't been in touch. I was worried. I had my father's funeral on Thursday. And on Friday morning, I rushed to Ashley's place because I was worried," Ms Smart said. 

"And he'd been there four days."

Linda Smart's son Ashley was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.(Supplied)

In Victoria, liquor licensing laws are supposed to stop bars and bottle shops from serving anyone who is intoxicated, which Ms Smart said her son would have been most days.

"He was never ever refused service of alcohol, right up until the day he bought a bottle the day he died," she said.

"I watched him being sold alcohol on many occasions drunk, and I couldn't intervene and ask them to stop selling."

While the law seems clear, enforcement is nearly impossible.

The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission told Ms Smart that in order to reach the burden of proof, it is "best practice" for one of its inspectors to witness the intoxicated person being served — a huge hurdle with fewer than 50 inspectors monitoring almost 25,000 licensed venues.

They instead reviewed the CCTV footage of Ashley's final purchase, which had no sound, and said he did not look drunk.

In the 10 days leading up to his death, Ashley Smart bought 11 bottles of vodka.(Supplied)

The inspector told Ms Smart he would recommend a change to the law be considered to include selling alcohol to people with substance abuse issues.

In a statement, commission chair Fran Thorn said they conducted a comprehensive review.

"As our investigation involves sensitive information, we are unable to share publicly any detailed information about the investigation," the statement said. 

"However, we were unable to establish a breach of the Act based on the available evidence."

Liquorland said it was unable to comment on the case, but said it was committed to the responsible service of alcohol.

"All our store team members undertake industry-leading training in the responsible service of alcohol," the retailer told 7.30. 

 

Alcohol industry 'exploited the pandemic as a marketing opportunity'

Like many, COVID-19 hit Ashley Smart hard, exacerbating his mental health issues and his problem drinking.

He was not alone — the pandemic had significant impacts on Australians' drinking habits.

One study found that in 2021, the number of Australians drinking alcohol hit its highest level in five years and bottle shops were reaping the benefits.

There was almost a 30 per cent increase in alcohol retail sales between 2019 and 2021 and along with it, jumps in alcohol-related ambulance callouts and alcohol-induced deaths.

Alcohol Change Victoria's Sarah Jackson said the alcohol industry exploited the pandemic as a marketing opportunity.

"They had this captive audience of people at home in isolation and we saw quite predatory marketing, quite explicit messaging encouraging people to turn to alcohol as a way to survive and cope," she told 7.30.

"And we're still seeing the really devastating fallouts of that."

Ms Jackson believes the regulator needs more powers and funding to better protect problem drinkers.

"We need the regulator to be much, much better resourced, much more funding, and an increase in that manpower," she told 7.30.

"We also need more meaningful sanctions; a real risk that someone who supplies alcohol to someone who is intoxicated might lose their license or might have their license suspended."

At the moment, there is nothing to stop anyone from selling alcohol to an alcoholic.

Ms Jackson said one of the problems is that the High Court has held there is no general duty of care owed by a licensee to its customers.

"We think that legislation should introduce a duty of care so that a licensee has to take reasonable steps to prevent harm to its customers," she said. 

In a statement, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation Melissa Horne said Victorians could be assured the regulator was appropriately resourced and the laws were adequate to minimise harm from alcohol.

"We've introduced — and continue to introduce — strong harm minimisation to reduce liquor-related harm for all Victorians, including strengthening the licence application process for large packaged liquor outlets, strengthening the requirements related to online sales and delivery of alcohol, and expanding the definition of alcohol-related harm," the statement said.

Last October, the New South Wales liquor regulator announced it was investigating popular alcohol delivery service Jimmy Brings over the death of a 49-year-old man who reportedly spent $24,000 with the company over three years, including daily orders in the weeks leading up to his death.

The NSW regulator has now confirmed to 7.30 it was unable to identify any breaches of the liquor laws at the time and has closed the investigation, but the laws have since been strengthened. 

Ms Jackson said more needed to be done to regulate online sales and delivery of alcohol, including a mandatory delay between the order and delivery to stop impulsive purchases.

"At the moment, deliveries can happen in under 30 minutes, and that means that if people are already intoxicated it enables them to continue that drinking session and it's placing people who are high-risk drinkers at risk of harm," she said. 

Australia's drinking culture 'just like America's gun culture'

It is now 18 months since her son died, and Ms Smart wants to convert her grief and anger into action.

Linda Smart wants to convert her grief and anger into action.(Supplied)

She wants more controls within the liquor industry and a rethink of Australia's attitude to drinking.

"We've got this massive drinking culture, just like America's got the gun culture, but we don't see it the same…But how many are we losing to that culture? And we're letting it happen. “We’ll say, 'America, put down your guns'; here, we're not prepared to change at all, we're not prepared to put down our beers or our vodkas because there's too much money involved."

Linda's son bought 11 bottles of vodka in his final 10 days ABC News