Press Release

Violent video games sold to children on high street

25th June 2008

Three high street shops have been caught selling 18-rated video games depicting sex and violence to a 15-year-old girl in an undercover investigation by Which? Computing.

Woolworths, Game and Maplin all allowed the teenager to buy age-restricted games, showing scenes of extreme brutality, on the high street.*

Trading Standards warned today** that violent computer games are being sold illegally to teenagers through internet auction sites, but Which? Computing has found the problem closer to home.

Woolworths sold Grand Theft Auto (GTA) – Vice City Stories, which shows scenes of sex and violence, and specialist shop Game sold Condemned 2, which is subtitled “a terrifying descent into chaos”, to the girl without question. In the Maplin store, the assistant asked the investigator’s age, but didn’t refuse the sale of Hitman, even when she said she was 15.

Under the Video Recordings Act, it’s an offence to sell video games to persons who have not reached the age specified in the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) certificate. The maximum penalty for this offence is £5,000 and/or six months’ jail.

All three stores are investigating the findings and say that under-age sales are rare. Brent and Harrow Trading Standards Services, who worked with Which? Computing on the research, will not prosecute, but will contact and monitor the stores. If further illegal sales of age-restricted games are uncovered, they will take legal action.

Sarah Kidner, Editor, Which? Computing says:

“It’s shocking and surprising that 18-rated games have been sold to a child as young as 15 by household names. The jury’s still out on whether violent video games have a negative influence on behaviour but, whatever your view, it’s still illegal to sell 18-rated games to minors.”

Ash Shah, assistant head of Brent and Harrow Council trading standards, says:

“Staff should realise that they have a moral and legal duty to stop these sales from taking place. There is a mixed but growing body of evidence that very violent games like this can sometimes influence under-age players with reports of anti social behaviour linked to them, in extreme cases even fatalities.”

• Copyright 2008 Dod's Parliamentary Communications Ltd
• About ePolitix.com
• Stakeholders
• Contacts
• Terms & Conditions
• Blog guidelines