A UK gas station has implemented an innovative facial biometric system to automatically control access to alcohol sales at one of its locations. Krisco Services Group has installed the age verification technology at their Mellors Fuel Shop in Wantage, Oxfordshire, where it guards entry to the store’s “beer cave” by analyzing customers’ faces to estimate if they are over 25 years old.
The system, developed by Innovative Technology Ltd, represents a significant deployment in automated age verification for retail environments. When customers approach the normally-locked beer cave, a camera scans their face and uses algorithmic analysis to determine if they appear to be of legal age. The door automatically unlocks only for customers estimated to be 25 or older.
For younger-appearing customers, the system alerts store staff, who can then manually verify ID and control access to the restricted area. The technology has been designed to operate without storing personal data, eliminating GDPR compliance concerns while still allowing staff faces to be saved for access purposes.
“We’re prevalent in C-stores and vape shops. If you go into a pub and they have age-gating for their fruit machines, chances are it’s our system,” explains John Vallis, Innovative Technology’s senior business development manager.
The implementation comes after Innovative Technology joined the Age Verification Providers Association (AVPA) to help advance automated age verification solutions. Luxman Selvarajah, managing director at Krisco Services Group, notes that the system helps reduce awkward ID verification interactions while maintaining compliance.
The system “takes some of the awkwardness out of asking for ID, and takes some of the pressure off cashiers,” says Selvarajah. It also automatically generates refusal logs and compliance reports for Trading Standards officers.
Following successful deployment at the beer cave, Krisco is expanding the use of the MyCheckr system to its self-service tills, building on existing implementations at staffed checkouts. The technology is available in two versions: a standard model priced at £550 and a simplified mini version at £350, with no ongoing subscription fees required.
Source: Forecourttrader
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April 1, 2025 – by Cass Kennedy
