Interview Questions: How Comfortable are You Checking IDs for a Purchase of Alcohol Even If the Customer Looks to be in His Mid-30s?

Cashier Interview QuestionsFor cashier positions, preparing for interview questions is extremely important. One question you might be asked is: How comfortable are you checking IDs for a purchase of alcohol even if the customer looks to be in his mid-30s? You’ll need to think about how you would respond to this type of question. Let’s consider a few things so you can come up with a good answer.

Since you’ll be working as a cashier, there will be laws and rules governing how you do business with customers. Checking for IDs is not something you’ll necessarily enjoy doing, but you’ll have to do it anyway. Therefore, you must be confident enough to ask for a customer’s ID when selling alcohol. If they look like they’re in their mid-30s, can you carry out this task without embarrassment? You shouldn’t compromise and let them off the hook just because they look old enough.

Best answer: “I’m very comfortable checking their IDs no matter how old they look.”

This will let the employer know that you can carry out certain tasks and be an effective cashier. The recruiter will have more confidence in your ability to deal with difficult situations.

Alternative answer: “I don’t find it a problem at all asking for their ID. After all, it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

The question is really a gauge of how much the employer can trust you, especially since you’ll be in charge of the register. At the same time, it is a test to determine if you are really aware of your responsibilities as a cashier.

Keep in mind that it is your responsibility to sell alcohol only to those who are permitted by law to purchase it. Selling alcohol to a minor, even accidentally, can have serious repercussions for both you and your employer. There’s really no room for mistakes here.

Bad answer: “I would trust my instincts and let the customer buy the alcohol since he looks old enough to do so.”

This is not the right time to go with your gut feeling. You need to go by the book when you’re selling alcohol. If you don’t feel comfortable checking IDs, then the cashier position really isn’t for you. Being a cashier is a big responsibility, and this includes asking for customers’ IDs every time they ask to buy alcohol. When you think about the job from this perspective, you’ll see that there’s no need to be embarrassed when checking IDs.

Remember, you’re asking for their IDs for a perfectly valid reason. If you can express this idea to your interviewer, you can gain their confidence and it will help you get the job.

Read 5482 times Last modified on Thursday, 03 March 2016 16:18
Alan Carniol

Alan is the creator of Interview Success Formula, a training program that has helped more than 80,000 job seekers to ace their interviews and land the jobs they deserve. Interviewers love asking curveball questions to weed out job seekers. But the truth is, most of these questions are asking about a few key areas. Learn more about how to outsmart tough interviewers by watching this video.