NEW YORK --The 7-Eleven convenience store chain has reached an agreement with New York state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and 39 other attorneys general under which the stores will improve procedures to make sure minors are not buying tobacco products. Spitzer said 7-Eleven agreed to pay the participating states $375,000 as part of the settlement.
7-Eleven has 258 stores in New York state. With 5,673 outlets in other states, Spitzer said the Dallas-based company is the nation's largest retailer of tobacco products.
Among [image-nocss] the steps 7-Eleven agreed to take were to check the IDs of all tobacco purchasers who appear to be younger than age 27; to accept only valid government IDs as proof of age; to prohibit self-service displays of cigarettes or vending machine sales, and to hire an independent auditor to conduct random compliance checks at 900 7-Eleven stores each year.
The settlement is similar to ones reached in recent years between attorneys general from around the country and such tobacco retailers as Rite Aid, Wal-Mart and Sam's Club.Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.