Police are targeting home bottle stores since the discovery of an illegal home shop last week. Police found numerous bottles of alcohol in the house and discovered that the homeowners were actually running an illegal alcohol shop, charging as much as $100 for a bottle of spirits and $150 for a block of beer. This is despite the ban on full strength take-away alcohol in the area since 2007.

This post from Yahoo News explains further:

Fitzroy Crossing police are targeting illegal home bottle shops after alcohol was seized from a house in the Junjuwa community last week.

Officers executed a search warrant on the home and uncovered 52 bottles of bourbon, 21 bottles of wine, 14 bottles of scotch, four bottles of rum and seven blocks of beer throughout the house.

Sen. Sgt Andrew Stevens said the homeowners were charging $100 for a bottle of spirits and $150 for a block of beer.

A ban on full-strength takeaway alcohol came into force in Fitzroy Crossing in 2007.

Source: http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/world/18767879/police-seize-alcohol-from-home-bottle-shop/

One of the reasons why home bottle stores are so bad for the community is because in addition to not adhering to tax laws, these operators are not adhering to Responsible Service of Alcohol laws.

Regulation of these illegal shops is impossible so they can sell alcohol to minors, to alcoholics or drunk customers and can cause violence to erupt in the community without authorities having any means of recourse if they do not know where these illegal home shops are being run.

This community was noted for alcohol fuelled problems which is why a ban on full strength take-away alcohol was implemented in the first place and any positive change seen by this ban is often erased by unscrupulous illegal traders, taking advantage of members of the community by charging exorbitant prices for alcohol.

There is a reason why it is so important that people who serve or sell alcohol are trained to do so, it is so that the community is not harmed by this. This is precisely why Australian legislation dictates that anyone who sells or serves alcohol complete the Responsible Service of Alcohol course.

The course covers the following important topics

1. An introduction to RSA – teaching you the principles of serving alcohol responsibly.
2. RSA legislation – covering the skills and knowledge necessary to sell or serve alcohol according to NSW legislation. Here you will learn about the legal requirements of RSA.
3. The impact of alcohol – including the risks to your patrons, including long-term health problems, associated with alcohol consumption. You will also learn how alcohol impacts on personal and community health.
4. The section on RSA strategies will provide you with a range of skills that will help you to comply with the requirements of the liquor laws.  This section helps workers practically apply what they have learnt by looking at role plays demonstrating best practice in RSA strategies.