Nearly everyone knows that it is against the law in the United States for people under age 21 to drink alcohol. But you may not be aware that to uphold the law and to prevent underage drinking, some state and local governments are limiting youth access to alcohol by passing social host liability laws. Social hosting is when an adult provides and/or serves alcohol to a young person who is under the minimum age of 21. Social hosting can take place in a party-like atmosphere or by any adult simply providing alcohol to teenagers and their peers for them to drink. It can even extend to parents and homeowners who are not on the premises and/or did not provide the alcohol.

What is Social Host Liability?

• Social host liability refers to laws that hold noncommercial individuals (social hosts) responsible for underage drinking events on the property they own, lease, or otherwise control.
• If an adult provides social hosting, he or she could be held criminally and civilly liable. This means getting arrested or getting sued.
• The laws can extend to include adults who don’t take sufficient measures to stop underage drinking even if the parents or homeowner is not on the premises and/or did not provide the alcohol.