Responsible Service Policy

1. Client-Provided Alcohol

Unless the accepted proposal identifies a separately licensed alcohol provider, all alcoholic beverages must be selected, purchased, paid for, owned, received, and supplied by the client or venue. Alcohol is not sold or included in the Special Sips service price.

Special Sips will not purchase alcohol for the client, advance or receive reimbursement for alcohol, mark up or resell alcohol, include complimentary alcohol with a paid package, charge guests by the drink, sell drink tickets, accept donations in exchange for drinks, operate a cash bar, or collect admission that includes alcoholic beverages.

Client-owned alcohol must be legally purchased and delivered by the client, venue, licensed retailer, or other legally authorized party. Shopping-list quantities are planning estimates, not guarantees against shortages or excess. All unopened and remaining alcohol remains the client’s property and responsibility.

2. Private Events and Licensed Providers

Standard service is intended for private, hosted events where invited guests are not separately charged for drinks. Public or ticketed events, fundraisers, festivals, cash bars, drink-ticket systems, and alcohol included with admission require advance compliance review.

Special Sips may require a properly licensed venue, caterer, nonprofit permit holder, or alcohol-service provider, and may decline an event when the alcohol arrangement cannot be verified as lawful and acceptable to the venue.

3. Venue Approval and Local Requirements

The client must confirm that alcohol and outside bartenders are permitted; the alcohol arrangement, service hours, equipment, rentals, ingredients, permits, insurance, security, and approvals satisfy venue and local requirements; and no exclusive provider rule applies.

Venue rules, loading instructions, insurance requirements, and restrictions must be disclosed before booking. Late requirements may change pricing or service. Special Sips may refuse or discontinue work that would violate law, ordinance, venue rule, license restriction, insurance requirement, or reasonable safety standards.

4. Responsible Alcohol Service

Special Sips controls service decisions and will not knowingly serve anyone under 21. Staff may require acceptable government-issued photo identification; a guest who cannot establish legal drinking age when asked will not be served.

Staff may refuse, slow, suspend, or stop service to anyone who appears intoxicated, behaves aggressively or unsafely, provides alcohol to a minor, self-serves, interferes with staff, pressures staff to overpour, violates venue rules, or cannot establish legal drinking age. The client and venue may not override that decision, and no refund is due because responsible-service measures are used.

5. Bar Rules

Guests may not enter the working bar area or use Special Sips tools without permission. Special Sips may decline shots, doubles, drinking-game service, rapid consecutive servings, or other high-risk service.

Water and reasonable nonalcoholic options must remain available. The client must designate a sober authorized contact able to make event-day logistical decisions.

6. Service Hours and Last Call

Service begins and ends at the accepted proposal times. Last call may occur approximately 20–30 minutes before scheduled alcohol service ends and does not extend the contracted period.

Service may end earlier when required by law, ordinance, venue rule, security, safety, or responsible-service concerns. Additional time is not guaranteed. Approved event-day overtime has a one-hour minimum at 150% of the normal hourly rate, followed by 30-minute increments.

7. Outdoor Events, Heat, and Weather

Outdoor events require an adequate backup plan, overhead cover or shade, stable flooring, and protection for staff, ingredients, electrical equipment, and rentals.

Staff are not required to work in lightning, dangerous winds, flooding, wildfire conditions, unsafe heat or air quality, or other conditions posing a reasonable threat. Ordinary rain, heat, humidity, or wind does not create an automatic refund when the event could proceed under the required backup plan.