A Greenville bar is changing after liquor liability insurance costs strain business

A decade-old Greenville bar has stopped selling alcohol due to a state law that has affected locally owned-establishments across South Carolina.

According to co-founder and owner Leah Vaughan, Local Cue will no longer sell alcoholic drinks because of rising insurance costs resulting from a 2017 “liquor liability” law.

“I'm hoping that by staying open and doing this enough attention is put on the subject of liquor liability so that it will help all of us locally owned bars," Vaughan said. "We want people to go out and have a good time. We want people to be able to enjoy themselves. Now, that is going to change that a lot".

The South Carolina General Assembly passed the liquor liability law in 2017 , which required businesses with an alcohol license and selling alcohol after 5 p.m. to maintain liquor liability insurance of at least $1 million.

Vaughan said the Local Cue insurance costs went from $60,000 annually to $141,000 and then $341,000.

Having to choose to remove alcohol has been one of the toughest decisions she’s had to make as a business owner, Vaughan said.

"This has been an experience. It is scary because it's so far out of your control. You can't fix it and it's all going to change a lot of things for local breweries and bars," Vaughan said.

A post on the Local Cue Facebook page has garnered hundreds of reactions, comments, and shares on the social media platform.

The ramifications

“It’s awful, it’s horrible. We have had to just reorganize how we do things. The revenue that is brought in through alcohol allowed me to hire a deeper staff and pay people,” Vaughan said. She has also had to cut benefits for many remaining employees of the business she started with her father.

“This is my family, and to be able to have to lose some of them because of this, and then everybody's changed their roles. Their jobs, everything’s changing, it's scary,” Vaughan said.

South Carolina Bar and Taverns Association executive director Christopher Smith said the law has major ramifications for the state's local bar industry as many can't match the insurance cost.

“Unfortunately, the consequence of that bill is that you have places closing left and right or they’re having to make large changes like Local Cue. It's not only here in the Upstate, but also throughout South Carolina that this is happening,” Smith said.

Blind Horse Saloon was one of the businesses that shut down earlier this year. On May 14, the music venue that served alcohol announced it was closing its doors due to the rising cost of liability insurance. Smiley's Acoustic Cafe and Rotties 221 Biergarten cited similar reasons for closing.

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An alcohol-related incident could include an impaired driver causing a car crash or someone under the influence committing a violent act. If someone frequented a business and consumed alcohol there before the incident, then the business is liable to be included in the lawsuit.

Vaughan and Smith said the law is needed but creates loopholes or problems between businesses and their insurance companies.

“I could be at my home, drink four or five beers, then I can go to a bar and I'll have a beer there. If something happens at that bar or after I leave from there, the bar is basically responsible for all that happened,” Smith said.

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What's next?

The South Carolina Senate discussed Senate Bill 533, called the “S.C. Justice Act,” before the most recent session ended, but it did not pass. The bill modifies the liquor liability law by allowing a court to consider the percentage of fault when there’s an alcohol-related incident.

“It brings in personal responsibility. The onerous is not all on the bars per se. It also would involve your car insurance, it also would involve you personally if where you would be liable for that incident,” Smith said.

Smith asked supporters to contact their local representatives about what’s happening to locally owned bars in South Carolina. He said that if the bill doesn’t gain traction and passes then there could be dire consequences for local bars.

“It affects jobs, it affects the economy, and it affects tax revenues. Ultimately, what’s going to happen is we're going to only have chains in South Carolina that’ll sell alcohol. That's not going to help keep people employed,” Smith said.

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Smith also hopes Gov. Henry McMaster and the state legislature call a special session before January to pass SB 533.

“We need to help these bars because they need help now and we can't wait," Smith said. "At this current rate everything is going now with locally owned bars, it's just unsustainable.”

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: A Greenville bar is changing after liquor liability insurance costs strain business