An undercover investigation has found that major supermarket chains across France are still selling alcohol to minors, breaking the law meant to protect underage drinkers.
A report by Addictions France on Thursday said nearly nine out of 10 supermarkets tested sold alcohol to customers under 18.
Despite long-standing rules and government promises to tighten checks, underage customers still find it easy to buy alcohol in 2025.
Tests were carried out in April and May in supermarkets in Nantes, Angers and Rennes. They showed that 86 percent of 90 stores sold alcohol to minors.
Big chains named include Auchan, Lidl, Leclerc, U Express, Intermarché, Carrefour, Monoprix and Franprix.
This is slightly better than 2021, when 93 percent of shops failed the check. But Addictions France said that is still far from good enough.
Posting on X, the group wrote: “From retail giants to neighbourhood bars, they’re all breaking the law by selling alcohol to minors.”
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ID checks not enforced
“Despite the formal ban and public commitments, alcohol is still widely accessible to minors,” said Myriam Savy, advocacy manager at Addictions France. She called for State-led checks and tough penalties to force change.
For the tests, minors with a bailiff tried to buy alcohol in stores, including some that had been reported before.
Only 8 percent of shops asked to see ID.
The law – Article L.3342-1 of the Public Health Code – says staff must always check a customer’s age, not just when they look young.
To avoid excuses, all tests were done on quiet weekday afternoons when staff were not under pressure.
Some chains did worse than others. Of 25 Carrefour stores tested, only two refused to sell.
Lidl was similar, with just two out of 11 shops doing the right thing. Monoprix and Auchan did worst – none of their stores passed.
One chain stood out. All seven shops tested from Coopérative U refused to sell to minors.
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Tougher measures required
This is not the first time rules have been ignored. Last summer, only one out of 42 bars, cafés and fast food outlets in Loire-Atlantique refused to serve minors.
Addictions France said its 2023–2024 checks have led to 37 legal cases. But with first hearings not due until December 2025, the group warned that long delays let offenders off the hook.
They want random checks and tough fines: up to 2 percent of turnover for small firms and 10 percent for large ones. They also want licences suspended after repeat offences, and cases heard within six weeks.
Right now, the maximum fine for selling alcohol to a minor is €7,500, which doubles for repeat offenders. But Addictions France said these fines are rare and the top level is almost never used.
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Retailers respond
A Carrefour spokesperson told AFP that most stores follow the rules and staff will be reminded.
Dominique Schelcher, CEO of Coopérative U, promised a “very strong re-sensitisation” push, saying: “We must be exemplary.”
Switzerland’s firmer approach – which mixes prevention, random checks and real deterrents – has seen better results.
By 2023, 65 percent of Swiss retailers checked ID, up from 54 percent in 2014.
In France, a Lidl store was recently fined €5,000 for selling vodka to a 16-year-old who later died in a scooter crash in the Basque Country.
Lidl is appealing the fine.
