You should not deliver an order containing alcohol if the recipient is underage, visibly intoxicated, lacks valid ID, or if the delivery location or conditions violate alcohol laws. These rules protect you from legal trouble and keep alcohol delivery safe and compliant.

Key situations: do NOT deliver

  • The recipient is under the legal drinking age (21 in most of the U.S.).
  • The recipient does not have a valid photo ID , refuses to show it, or the ID appears fake, altered, or does not match the person receiving the order.
  • The recipient is visibly intoxicated (slurred speech, unsteady, glassy or bloodshot eyes, cannot focus, aggressive behavior, clear signs of drug or alcohol influence).
  • The alcohol container is open, broken, or unsealed when you receive it or during transport; deliveries typically must be in sealed, closed containers.
  • No adult of legal age is present to sign for and accept the alcohol; alcohol usually cannot be left unattended or at the door like a normal package.

Locations where delivery is usually banned

Many services and laws prohibit you from delivering alcohol to certain places, even if an adult is present. Commonly banned locations include:

  • K–12 schools and often college campuses or dorms.
  • Prisons, correctional facilities, rehab/addiction centers, mental health or detox facilities.
  • Lockers, storage units, mail/package shipping or locker facilities (where identity and age cannot be properly verified).
  • Other businesses that sell alcohol such as liquor stores, bars, some retail shops.
  • Any area where local law prohibits alcohol sales or delivery (dry areas, restricted zones, or outside the retailer’s allowed territory or hours).

Common real‑world examples

You should not deliver an order containing alcohol in situations such as:

  1. A college student asks you to bring beer to a dorm on campus and appears underage or cannot show proper ID.
    • Campus address + questionable age/ID = decline.
  1. A customer at an apartment door is clearly drunk, swaying, slurring, and smells strongly of alcohol.
    • Visible intoxication = no delivery, even if they are clearly an adult.
  1. The only person at home is a 19‑year‑old who says their parent ordered it and will be back soon.
    • No adult of legal age available to sign = no alcohol handoff.
  1. The app directs you to a storage locker or package pickup point where no one is physically there to show ID.
    • Locker or storage location = alcohol must not be delivered.
  1. You notice the wine bottle in the bag is already open, or the seal is broken.
    • Open container = return/decline the alcohol portion.

Simple rule of thumb

If any of these are true, do not deliver the alcohol :

  • Person is underage, lacks valid ID, or ID seems fake.
  • Person is visibly intoxicated.
  • Alcohol is open or unsealed.
  • Delivery is to a prohibited location (school, campus housing, prison, rehab, storage/locker, alcohol‑selling business, or banned area).
  • No eligible adult is present to receive and sign.

When in doubt, most services instruct drivers that it is safer—and fully allowed—to refuse the alcohol part of the order rather than risk an illegal delivery.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.