Signs of Intoxication: The AGCO List Ontario Servers Work From

Ontario law asks you to judge a guest by what you can see. Section 32 of the Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019 says no person shall sell or supply liquor, or permit liquor to be sold or supplied, to a person who is or appears to be intoxicated.

Read "appears to be" again. The Act asks for no blood alcohol number, no breath test and no admission from the guest. It asks what you can see, so your eyes need training. The AGCO information sheet on recognizing intoxication is where that training comes from.

Two more rules sit alongside section 32

Section 31 of the same Act makes it an offence for a person to be in an intoxicated condition in a place the general public may enter. A police officer may arrest that person without a warrant if the officer thinks safety requires it.

The house carries a duty too. A licence holder must not permit intoxication, unlawful gambling or disorderly conduct on the licensed premises, or in adjacent areas under the holder's exclusive control. The AGCO sheet cites section 43(1) of O. Reg. 746/21 for that duty.

So intoxication in your room is a problem even when you sold nothing. Two guests who arrive already intoxicated and order only nachos still put the house in breach.

The signs, sorted by what you are looking at

The AGCO sheet lists the signs. Sorting them by the part of the guest you are watching makes them easier to hold.

Appearance:

• Red eyes. Bloodshot to any degree counts. Cannabis may also bring eyelid tremors or dilated pupils.
• Sweating more than normal for the temperature and conditions.
• Breathing that is noticeably slower or shallower than yours, with little air moving.
• Tiredness. Heavy or closed eyes, or a placid, fixed gaze.

Coordination:

• Fine motor control drops. The guest fumbles papers or a phone, or struggles to pick up change.
• Hand-eye coordination declines, so the guest misjudges distance and depth.
• Gross motor control drops. The guest has trouble standing upright or walking a straight line.
• The guest weaves, missteps, or stumbles into people and furniture, or puts hands out for balance.

Speech:

• Volume that does not fit the moment. Shouting for no reason, or whispering with no secret to keep.
• Volume that swings from low to high with no reason to change.
• Pace that races and then slows, or that runs fast or slow all night.
• Poor enunciation. The guest repeats a stumble over one word, or slurs several words together.

Behaviour:

• Alertness drops. The guest takes longer to answer you or to react to events.
• The guest cannot follow what you say, or becomes muddled.
• You repeat a simple question before you get an answer.

Why slow speech and slow answers travel together

The AGCO sheet notes that alcohol and cannabis are depressants. Health Canada says alcohol slows brain function and can affect breathing. Slow speech, slow answers and shallow breaths all come from that one effect, which is why they tend to arrive together.

The cause can sit outside your bar. The AGCO names alcohol, cannabis, other substances, or a combination. Section 32 does not ask what caused the state. It asks only whether the person appears intoxicated.

One sign is not a verdict

A single sign may not necessarily be linked to intoxication, the AGCO sheet says. Signs may appear in any sequence, or arrive clustered, depending on the person.

Health Canada lists what changes alcohol's effect: the amount, how fast the person drinks, gender and age, body size, food, medications that interact with alcohol, past drinking, health, and mood. Two guests can drink the same and show you different faces.

That is the case for watching over time instead of grading a single moment.

How to watch a table

The AGCO sheet puts the monitoring duty on the licence holder. On the floor, the work is yours.

Read the guest before the first order. The sheet tells you to chat with customers first. Have they eaten, and have they been drinking elsewhere or using cannabis? That read gives you the person's normal for the night.

Then watch across visits rather than in one glance. Stay alert for the development of other signs after the first one. Steady hands at 8 p.m. and a fumbled phone at 10 p.m. is a change, and the change is your signal.

Count what you served in standard drinks while you watch. A tall craft can is not one drink, and counting drinks properly keeps your evidence honest.

When the signs add up

The AGCO sets three levels, each with a fixed answer.

• One sign: monitor the guest and stay alert for more. Make food, water, and low-alcohol or non-alcoholic drinks available.
• A few signs: keep monitoring closely. Offer or serve food, water, and low-alcohol or non-alcoholic drinks to slow the drinking down.
• Multiple signs: stop serving alcohol to that guest under any circumstances. Manage the intoxication to lower the chance of injury or damage. Make sure the guest has a safe way home, and call the police if needed.

Watch what changes between the first two levels. At one sign you make the alternatives available. At a few signs you offer or serve them.

The trap to expect on the test

The test likes to raise your burden of proof. An option may tell you to wait until you are sure the guest is drunk. Section 32 says "is or appears to be intoxicated", so appearance is enough.

The test also plays the tab against the signs. A guest with two drinks on your tab may have been drinking elsewhere, or using cannabis.

Count the signs in the question. One sign points to monitoring and offering food, water or non-alcoholic drinks. Multiple signs point to stopping service, with no exception for a regular or a friend. Expect a question about the order of signs, and remember there is no set order.

Keep going

The free lesson Recognizing intoxication covers this ground in full. Once the signs add up, how to refuse service politely covers the words and the exit.

Responsible service and refusal carries 25% of the course, so it earns steady practice. Start with the Smart Serve practice test guide, then take a free practice test.