Why Do Some Venues Remove Bottle Caps From Your Drinks?

A lot of people wonder why some venues insist on removing the cap off your bottle when you buy a drink at an event. We've looked into it and we've even gotten answers from the venues themselves.

Differing perspectives

This is a very emotive one. People have some very strong feelings on this and many people are quite angry about having the tops of their bottles removed.

In discussions, we came up with a few perspectives:

• They can be used as a missile, when full and with a cap on. These can be used to throw at the stage and among the crowd and can cause injuries. We've seen some nasty head gashes from plastic bottles thrown at gigs, in fairness.
• Bottles which have the caps on represent more of a trip hazard too. Generally speaking if you stand on a bottle with no cap on it, then it will crumple under your foot. Standing on a bottle with the cap in place tends to be more likely to result in a trip or fall, as it stays cylindrical, rather than flattening under your weight.
• Some people reckon venues do it so that customers are more likely to spill their drinks and, thus, more likely to buy MORE drink. 

Here's a thought though:

Surely if you're giving out bottles with no caps on them, then you're increasing the likelihood of liquid spillages, which in turn increases the likelihood of people slipping on spilled liquids?

It's all a question of risk.

The venues tell us. . . 

I emailed 6 venues around the country on this one and asked 3 simple questions of each:

1. Are bottle caps removed at point of sale in your venue?
2. If so, for what reason?
3. If not, was it considered and what is the thinking behind not removing them?

I received replies from 3 of them and was actually surprised to. I made it clear in the email that I had no angle, no agenda and that I was simply looking to inform a blog post, but I was worried people would be wary. It seems at least 3 weren't anyway.

The nice people in the 3Arena responded very promptly, which I thought was nice. 

Interestingly (or not?) it wasn't signed off by anyone in particular but still, here's what they said:

"Yes bottle caps are removed from all bottles sold here. This is for health and safety reasons.

If a bottle is thrown on the ground with the lid still on and someone steps on it, they could cause injury to themselves, but if the lid is removed and a person stands on it the bottle will crush under the weight."

In fairness, this is one of the responses I expected.

I'm not sure if the 3Arena, in any of its previous incarnations, has had any claims as a result of an injury sustained in that way, but it doesn't surprise me that avoiding same is a motivation. 

Tom Gilshrist, Facilities Manager for Aramark in Croke Park responded on their behalf. He stated:

"The reason we remove the caps is for safety, so that if  the bottles are used as a missile and thrown onto the pitch or stands they will cause less harm if the liquid has spilled out."

I queried further to see and he noted that they 'haven't had an incident to date but you can't be too careful'.

He makes a valid point. We're all for anticipating issue and taking all reasonable precautions to avoid them. 

One of the most comprehensive responses we received was from Darren in Whelan's. He initially responded mainly in relation to alcoholic beverages being served in bottles without the caps. I was really asking more about soft drinks in 'venue' environments. I clarified that and Darren told me the same thinking applied, for them. He said:

". . . as a live music venue there are considerations given to the fact that sometimes people like to throw bottles. A bottle without a top will lose liquid and cause less damage than a full bottle. Also a bottle that can be resealed can be filled with other liquid (for example, "gentleman's liquid"), then resealed and thrown to disastrous consequences. Thankfully this hasn't been an issue since the 80s."

The bottom line

It's interesting to see the different thinking and motivations behind the same ultimate decision.

The over-riding consideration, for all parties, is the safety of people at the event. 

While it may be annoying to be given your bottle of water or whatever minus a cap, it's done for the greater good and to save people from being injured.

Tough to argue with that one.