Shock number of Queenslanders drinking at home before COVID

Queenslanders were drinking more at home than anywhere else long before COVID-19 lockdown, new research out today reveals.

Queensland were drinking more at home than anywhere else long before COVID-19 lockdown, research out today from the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) reveals.

The home is where the majority of Australians consume the most in a single occasion and also drink most frequently, rather than at pubs, clubs or restaurants and a shock finding shows that when alcohol is delivered to the home nearly 40 per cent drink more than 11 drinks on the delivery day.

The Annual Alcohol Poll 2020: Behaviours and Attitudes found that 67 per cent of Australians who drink alcohol had the largest quantity on one occasion in the past 12 months in the home, which is also where the majority drink most frequently.

The poll was conducted in January and February just before the COVID-19 lockdown measures were introduced.

FARE chief executive Caterina Giorgi said drinking in the home is a longstanding trend that has since intensified.

“Despite what many of us assume, people who drink alcohol are more likely to do so at home – and this is true even before the lockdown measures. This is the case whether people are younger or older, women or men, or living in major cities or regional areas,” Ms Giorgi said.

“Drinking in the home is widespread, yet we don’t often think about the harms from alcohol occurring in the home because they’re largely invisible. Alcohol increases the severity and frequency of family violence and contributes to a range of cancers and alcohol dependence. These harms have significant negative impacts on children, families and whole communities,” Ms Giorgi said.

The poll also examined alcohol retail online and found that of people who had ordered alcohol online in the past 12 months, 23 per cent had alcohol delivered at least weekly and almost half had alcohol delivered within two hours.

Brisbane couple Riley Will and Jeremy Snell drink more at home than going out to pubs and clubs. Picture: Josh Woning

Of the people who had online retailers deliver within two hours 70 per cent drank more than four standard drinks that day, while 38 per cent drank 11 or more standard drinks that day.

“Retailers are pushing alcohol into homes at all hours, with delivery as soon as 30-minutes. These practices are contributing to riskier alcohol use, and commonsense measures such as introducing a two-hour delay between online orders and delivery, are needed to prevent harm,” Ms Giorgi said.

Online alcohol retailers were not routinely checking ID, with only 38 per cent of people

indicating their ID was checked on delivery and 25 per cent saying the alcohol was left unattended.

Brisbane couple Riley Will, 25, and Jeremy Snell, 25, often enjoy a glass of wine at home on the weekend.

“I feel like it’s harder to get into pubs now, It’s not worth the trouble,” Ms Will said.

“I recently started having a subscription wine box delivered each month, it’s a good way to try new wines and a little more exciting than running to the bottle-o.

“Plus drinking at home is so much more affordable.”