Covid: All customers must sign in at pubs under new rules
All customers will be required to sign in when pubs, restaurants and cafes reopen in England as part of new rules for lockdown easing.
Hospitality venues are set to reopen for outside service only from 12 April in the second stage of the government’s roadmap.
However, every visitor aged 16 or over will be required to check into the venue or provide contact details. Previously, only one member of each group was required to do so.
Under new government rules, punters will be asked to check in either through the NHS Test and Trace app or manually.
Venues will also be required to take “reasonable steps” to refuse entry to anyone who refuses to check in or provide contact details.
The proposals have been met with anger from industry bodies, however, who argued the measures would add a further burden to struggling venues and potentially deter customers from heading out.
In a joint statement, UK Hospitality, the British Beer & Pub Association and the British Institute of Innkeeping said the rules would add “more confusion and inconvenience for customers and staff”.
The government is yet to publish its review on the use of Covid vaccine certificates, which could see pubs and restaurants turn away patrons if they haven’t had a jab or a recent negative test.
The trade bodies have also warned that any such requirement for entry could put people off going to pubs and restaurants, dealing a further blow to the sector.