This article is more than 10 years old

This article is more than 10 years old

Constant ID checks in supermarkets and off-licences are "infantilising" young adults and confusing shoppers about legal age limits, a report by a civil liberties group claims today.

The survey by the Manifesto Club suggests that cashiers' over-zealous questioning of customers in their 20s is "penalising thousands of innocent" people and forcing them to carry their passports all the time.

The study, 28¾: How Constant Age Checks Are Infantilising Adults, is published as the coalition government is considering increasing to £20,000 the maximum penalty for those illegally serving underage drinkers .

"The most annoyed constituency is people in their late 20s, who are being frequently ID checked, particularly by supermarkets," the report says.

"Many people in their late 20s said that they have been checked more over the past two years than when they were 18, and that they are now forced to carry their passport to the shops."

Campaigns under the slogans of Think 21 and Think 25 have led to confusion about the correct age limit for consuming alcohol, resulting in some checkout staff refusing to sell products to those who are under 25 but over 18, the Manifesto Club maintains.

"People are being refused alcohol when shopping with younger siblings or children – including one woman who was prevented from buying a bottle of wine, because her 23-year old daughter and 22-year-old friend could not provide ID."

In some cases, the study finds, adults have been ID-checked for other products including matches, glue, paracetamol, Christmas crackers, bleach, chocolate cherry liqueurs, Rizla rolling papers and cough drops.

"These adults are no longer young and feel that they have earned the right to be treated with some respect," the report's author, Dolan Cummings said. "It's not flattering, so supermarkets should stop telling us that it is.

"Constant ID checks create the idea of alcohol as an illicit substance, rather than as a normal part of adult life to be enjoyed in an adult manner."

The Manifesto Club describes its aim as campaigning "against the hyper-regulation of everyday life". Its director, Josie Appleton, added: "'Producing your passport should not be a routine part of the checkout procedure.

"There is little point in the government abolishing ID cards while backing policies that mean we have to show ID whenever we go shopping. People in their 20s and 30s should be free to go to the supermarket or off-licence without being constantly challenged."