Preventing Youth Drunk Driving

Preventing Underage Drinking

MillerCoors is committed to being a leader in preventing youth access to alcohol.

We believe a responsible approach to alcohol should be a fundamental part of the American culture. To accomplish that, we create our own programs and engage with government, communities and policy organizations. We believe we can prevent underage drinking through the joined efforts of these parties, along with parents, distributors, retailers, other producers and law enforcement.

These resources focus on education, enforcement and awareness.

21. It's the Law.

Government studies consistently show that the vast majority of underage persons who drink get their alcohol from social sources—parents, siblings, friends and strangers of legal drinking age. To help stop this illegal practice, we created a highly visible public campaign called “21. It’s the Law. Thank you for not providing alcohol to minors.” Our signs send a direct, simple reminder. In addition, state-specific signs advise adults of the legal consequences of providing alcohol to minors.

21 Means 21

We developed the national “21 Means 21” advertising campaign to communicate very directly: We do not want the business of America’s youth. For retailers, point-of-sale materials and merchandise reinforce the importance of checking IDs. For customers, the campaign emphasizes it is illegal to buy alcohol for anyone underage, or serve alcohol to anyone underage. The message also reinforces the only good decision for people under 21 years of age: Don’t drink.

An Apple A Day

We support this program, developed by the Albany Citizens Council on Alcoholism and Other Chemical Dependencies in Albany, New York, which helps build literacy and critical thinking skills among children through a prevention-education curriculum. Research shows that if children age 5 through 11 develop a certain set of skills—often called resiliency skills—they have a greater chance of becoming productive and successful members of their communities. MillerCoors believes it’s never too early for children to develop the kinds of life skills necessary to make healthy, safe and responsible decisions.

BARS

BARS (Being an Alcohol Responsible Server) is a “secret shopper” program that helps keep servers and sellers vigilant about checking IDs. This service helps retailers bolster their own seller-training programs and block sales to minors. Participating establishments pay the BARS program to be monitored by BARS checkers (usually ages 21 to 25), who make random visits to stores to ensure that clerks check IDs when they buy alcohol beverages.

Driver License Guide

MillerCoors partners with law enforcement to produce an annual Driver License Guide, part of our continuing effort to help retail sales clerks and servers detect fake IDs. The guide gives examples of valid license formats for all 50 U.S. states and the Canadian provinces and is endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police. We make these guides available at no cost to law enforcement agencies and retailers. To date, more than 1.6 million copies have been distributed.

Let's Keep Talking

Research shows parents have the most influence on teens’ drinking decisions. To help parents, we developed a guidebook called “Let’s Keep Talking,” written with the assistance of experts in the fields of education, family therapy, law enforcement and student health and wellness. The book guides parents on asking the right questions; preparing kids for college and life after high school; knowing the laws governing underage drinking and the consequences associated with poor decisions. Download a copy.

MVParents.com

This site helps parents be “most valuable players” in their children’s lives. The program is built on Developmental Assets™, building blocks of healthy child development identified in research conducted by Search InstituteSM, a national leader in ideas, research, and strategies for growing healthy, thriving children and adolescents. When parents use these tools, it’s less likely their children will engage in high-risk behaviors, including underage drinking. For more information, go to http://www.MVParents.com.

ProvI.D.e/We I.D. Program

We help retailers by placing signage and providing resources where alcohol is sold or served to remind consumers of the need to show valid ID before buying alcohol. Materials include Driver’s License Guides, pocket-size ID cards, legal age calendars and wristbands to identify customers of legal age. Nearly 60 million wristbands, 1.2 million We I.D. cards, and 1.6 million ID books have been distributed since 1990.

Respect 21 Parents

An important step in preventing underage drinking is cutting off the source of alcohol. Sources include friends, family, other non-commercial sources and retail accounts. MillerCoors tackles the issue of alcohol access with distinctive point-of-sale messaging. Our Respect 21® Parents program provides signs and quick-tip information sheets to help parents with the important role they play in preventing illegal underage drinking. Our signs also alert patrons that identification is required to buy alcohol. They remind adults never to give alcohol to anyone under age 21. They assure parents and the community we are active partners in an effort to prevent underage access.

Respect 21 Responsible Retailing

Respect 21® Responsible Retailing, developed in partnership with Brandeis University and the Responsible Retailing Forum, helps retailers prevent underage alcohol sales. The program provides best-practice tools, resources and, in certain markets, legal-age mystery shopper inspections that get measurable results, including significant increases in the number of times that clerks correctly check IDs.

Start Talking Before They Start Drinking: A Family Guide

This guide for families was created by the Ad Council and made available by the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It’s designed to facilitate conversations with kids about responsible decision-making.

The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking—What It Means to You

This set of three documents shares knowledge and tools you need to take action against underage drinking. They explain underage alcohol use, the damage it can do, and ways to end underage drinking in homes, families and communities. There is one guide for communities, another for educators and a third for families.

We Don't Serve Teens Campaign

With members of The Beer Institute, we support the federal government’s We Don’t Serve Teens program. It offers parents and other adults tools and information to reduce teen drinking. We fully support this program's message that serving alcohol to teens is unsafe, illegal, and irresponsible. The Federal Trade Commission, as part of this consumer awareness effort, has designated this summer as a “Safe Summer.” Learn more.