A Welsh pub has been hit with a £1,000 fine after customers were caught drinking inside - before indoor hospitality was allowed to re-open.
From Monday (May 17) pubs are allowed to serve alcohol indoors for the first time in more than five months, following a period of restrictions which kicked in on December 4 last year. Pubs have been allowed to serve drinks outdoors since April 26, subject to a number of safety protocols being in place, but customers have not been allowed to drink or eat indoors until now.
One pub in west Wales, however, was caught with customers drinking inside more than two weeks ago, and the establishment, and some of the customers, have been hit in the pocket.
The Ffostrasol Arms, in the village of Ffostrasol between Llandysul and Llangrannog, was the subject of routine checks carried out by council licensing officers and police in the lead up to the first May Bank Holiday weekend. According to Ceredigion Council, customers were discovered drinking inside the premises in what it described as “a blatant disregard to public safety and the law”.
As a result, the pub has been handed a £1,000 fine and a premises improvement notice, while some of the customers caught drinking inside were made to pay £60 each.
It is not the first time the Ffostrasol Arms has been punished by Ceredigion Council. In October, 2020, the pub was handed an improvement notice and then subsequently a closure notice the following day when, according to the council, “it was established that further contraventions of the regulations had been identified”.
The pub was allowed to re-open a week later after “improving its procedures and facilities”. But, it has now been penalised again.
A spokeswoman for Ceredigion Council said: “On Friday, April 30, 2021, as part of checks leading up to the May Bank Holiday weekend, officers from Ceredigion Council’s public protection team were carrying out routine joint patrols with officers from Dyfed-Powys Police when they found a small number of customers drinking inside the premises of the Ffostrasol Arms, and not following the rules on keeping a social distance and wearing face coverings.
“The requirement for hospitality businesses to stay closed had only just been eased that week to allow businesses such as licensed premises to re-open their outdoor areas. It was therefore extremely disappointing to find a business showing such a blatant disregard to public safety and the law by allowing some of its customers to drink indoors. As a result, a Fixed Penalty Notice was issued as well as a premises improvement notice which required the business to put in place certain improvements in order to reduce the risk of exposure to coronavirus on the premises.
“In addition, some of the customers who were found drinking inside the premises have also been issued a £60 fixed penalty notice by Dyfed-Powys Police. Officers from the council and the police continue to conduct visits to premises throughout the county and offer support and advice to businesses. The vast majority of Ceredigion businesses comply with the coronavirus regulations and provide a safe environment for their customers.”
The Ffostrasol Arms has been allowed to remain open and is open as of Monday, May 17.
