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A supermarket refused to sell a couple a bottle of gin because they were shopping with their young daughters.

Jackie Chandler and her husband Gary Sprake were not allowed to buy their bottle of rhubarb gin from Lidl because their daughters, aged 11 and 14, were with them.

When the couple complained, the store's manager called the police to escort the family from the shop, the Mirror reports.

Mr Sprake, 43, tried to buy the £11.99 Hortus rhubarb and ginger gin liqueur on his own at another till but was again refused by staff.

The couple had been shopping at Lidl in Waterlooville, Hampshire, with their daughters - 14-year-old Ella-May and 11-year-old Rosa-May.

Ms Chandler and Mr Sprake decided to pick up a bottle of gin as they were visiting a friend's house for a drinks party later on.

(Image: Lidl)

The couple had been shopping at Lidl in Waterlooville, Hampshire, with 14-year-old Ella-May and 11-year-old Rosa-May.

They decided to pick up a bottle of the gin as they were later visiting a friend's house for a drinks party.

A manager was called to deal with the situation and when he backed the cashier, Mr Sprake then attempted to phone Lidl's head office.

The family were left bemused when the manager asked them to leave the store before phoning the police.

Ms Chandler said: "We were shocked when the cashier asked because we thought he was talking about us. But when we found out he meant our daughter, I thought 'he cannot be serious'.

"There is no way we would let her take a sip of alcohol, let alone buy a bottle."

Mr Sprake said he and his wife were "victims of stupidity".

He said: "Lidl should be ashamed of themselves.

"I wonder where the line on this policy is drawn. If I had a four-year-old, would I not be able to get a drink?

"And if I do go back to that store, which is unlikely, will I not be able to buy alcohol because they know I have a daughter?"

He added: "The whole thing is ridiculous."

A Lidl spokesman defended the store's ID policy.

He said: "It is never our intention for a customer to be dissatisfied in any way, however we are committed to selling alcohol responsibly.

"Whilst these actions may appear over-cautious, we support our colleagues in using their own judgement to uphold our 'Think 25' policy and, where there is any element of doubt, making the right decision.

"Under no circumstances do we tolerate abusive behaviour towards our colleagues."

When can supermarkets refuse to serve their customers alcohol?

Technically it is against the law to sell alcohol to anyone under 18 anywhere including supermarkets.

Offenders risk a fine of up to £20,000 and premises may be shut down so it’s a big deal for supermarkets and their staff.

The Challenge 21 and Challenge 25 policy means customers are asked to prove their age if they look under 21 or under 25 and, if they can’t, they will not be allowed to make the purchase.

The idea is to prevent selling booze accidentally to teenagers and it seems to be working.

Some supermarkets go further with some Tesco stores enforcing a Challenge 30 policy.

Supermarkets prefer to refuse sales than risk a single incident of selling to a minor.

Sometimes supermarkets might chose to ask all members of a group for ID.

This can lead to adults well over legal drinking age being refused service.

Asda has a Challenge 25 policy but said “where there is any element of doubt we support our colleagues to make the right decision”.

Lidl said stores operate the Challenge 25 policy, as well as ‘proxy sales’ awareness when it is believed an adult is buying alcohol for a minor rather than for themselves.

Tesco said the chain operated a Think 25 policy for selling alcohol. There is no policy in place for refusing to sell alcohol to customers who have their children with them, they said,

Sainsbury’s operate a Think 25 policy.