- A McDonald's in Liverpool has banned minors from eating there after 5 p.m. without an adult.
- A spokesperson said staff had been subjected to "verbal and physical abuse."
A McDonald's restaurant in the English city of Liverpool has banned minors from eating there after 5:00 p.m. without an adult.
A spokesperson for the burger giant told Insider that the restaurant introduced the temporary ban after staff at the city-center restaurant, which is open 24 hours, had been subjected to "verbal and physical abuse."
One customer told The Liverpool Echo that they witnessed a security guard telling someone that he couldn't let groups of teenagers in without an adult under new company policy.
"Over recent weeks, we have seen an increase in the number of incidents of anti-social behaviour in the area with our people being subjected to verbal and physical abuse," the spokesperson told Insider.
"We have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to crime and anti-social behaviour, and have temporarily restricted restaurant access to U18s from 5:00 p.m."
"This decision was not taken lightly and we are working closely with the police to find a resolution and help reduce these incidents," the spokesperson added.
Two other 24-hour McDonald's restaurants, both close to the location that introduced this rule — one a four-minute walk away and the other a 10-minute walk away — don't appear to have introduced the same policy.
Banning unaccompanied children and teens from restaurants is nothing new. In September 2021, a California burger restaurant banned customers under the age of 18 from visiting unless they're accompanied by an adult, saying that some had smoked marijuana in the bathroom, stolen soda from the fridge, and vandalized a neighbor's Halloween display.
Some hospitality workers say that customers have become ruder since the pandemic started, with clashes over COVID-19 policies like masks and social distancing, slower service amid the labor shortage, and rising prices due to inflation.