You’ve got a great dispensary. Friendly staff. Clean floors. Your product display? Gorgeous.
But if your budtender doesn’t check ID at checkout, all of that means nothing.
This isn’t us being dramatic, this is about compliance. And when it comes to cannabis, the quietest slip-ups are the most expensive.
At Above Board, we’ve seen it firsthand: dispensaries doing everything right except the last thing. That final ID check at the register? Skipped. Forgotten. Shrugged off.
Let’s talk about why that one moment matters more than you think.
Why You Need to Check ID Twice
In most legal cannabis markets, ID checks aren’t optional, they’re legally mandated. And not just once at the door. State regulations typically require a second verification at the point of sale.
That means:
- Yes, even if security scanned it already.
- Yes, even if the customer looks 85.
- Yes, even if they come in three times a week.
The budtender is the final line of defense. If they don’t verify age at checkout, your store could be liable for selling to a minor whether it was intentional or not.
In some states, regulators send in decoys to test exactly this. Failing once could mean thousands in fines or even a temporary license suspension.
The Risk Is Quiet Until It’s Not
Most dispensaries don’t skip the checkout ID check on purpose. It’s usually:
- A false sense of security from the front door ID scan
- Staff in a rush to move the line
- Assumptions based on customer appearance or behavior
- Lack of clarity on who’s responsible
But regulators don’t care about intention. They care about execution. And from a compliance perspective, the customer isn’t truly verified until the product is in hand and the ID is checked again.
What Our Secret Shoppers Are Seeing
We’ve run audits at some of the busiest, most beautiful dispensaries in New York and guess what?
Checkout ID checks are one of the most common compliance misses.
It’s not a matter of training. These are smart teams with good systems. But without clear accountability or habits in place, it falls through the cracks.
Our job at Above Board is to notice these misses before the regulators (or worse, the media) do.
Easy Fixes That Could Save You Thousands
Here’s how to turn this around fast:
Train budtenders to ask for ID every time — no exceptions.
Even if they “just saw it.” Make it part of your culture, not an optional courtesy.
Implement a POS reminder or required ID scan.
Some systems allow you to lock the sale until ID is entered or confirmed.
Reinforce accountability in team huddles.
Recognize those who follow policy consistently and coach those who don’t.
Secret shop yourself.
There’s no substitute for unfiltered insight. You need to know what’s actually happening when managers aren’t looking.
Compliance Is Quiet Work Until It Isn’t
You don’t get fined for checking ID too many times.
You do get fined for skipping it once.
Don’t let a four-second oversight put your license at risk. Train for it. Audit for it. Make it muscle memory.
Want to know if your team’s missing the mark?
Above Board secret shoppers are trained to spot the quiet risks — and we’ve got your back before regulators get there.