Pint rights: How to make sure you get the pint you paid for

When it comes to the pouring of the humble pint, and the size of its head – the layer of frothy foam on top – the law is unfortunately about as clear as a hazy IPA.

This is why industry body the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) introduced its own guidelines – as agreed with the Department of Trade and Industry (since replaced by two newer departments) – back in 1993.

So, let's not beat around the bush bar. Here, at a glance, are your pint rights according to those guidelines:

• You're entitled to a pint filled to the brim, or the line if your glass has one.

• You should get at least 95% liquid.

• If you don't want up to 5% to be head, you can ask for a top-up.

Not sure whether your pint meets the 95% liquid to 5% head ratio? You can use the width of a standard Biro pen as a rough yardstick for what 5% looks like – though of course, it'll depend on the size and shape of your glass.

Unsatisfied with the pint you've been served?

If your beer doesn't measure up, simply head back to the bar – before taking a sip, clever clogs – and ask for your glass to be filled up.

The BBPA's guidelines state that pubs should be happy to top you up, so don't worry about bar staff thinking you're causing a fuss – you're only asking for what you've paid for, after all.

If you're refused, the BBPA says to try talking to the management. City of London Trading Standards, which ran a campaign on asking for top-ups back in 2018, says as a last resort you could complain to your local trading standards office. But before going that far, try to settle things in person or, failing that, in writing. 

You could also take to social media, which can be a powerful tool when it comes to consumer rights, but remember that many pubs are struggling at the moment. Trade body UKHospitality says that, in England and Wales, almost 80 a month shut down in the first three months of this year, so maybe err on the side of restraint.

Whether you decide to pursue your complaint privately or publicly, try to be polite and stick to the facts, even if you're frustrated – and who isn't when they're left disappinted (sorry).

As mentioned in the previous section, the law provides a similar level of clarity as someone whose had a pint too many.

Let's start with the basics. The Measuring Instruments Regulations 2016 No. 1153 state that pints can be measured by the brim of a pint glass or a line measure – that's the line you get on larger glasses which indicates where a pint comes up to.

So if you buy a pint, you should get a full pint – but sadly these regulations don't say whether that pint should include the head. And that's the real question. The debate over whether a pint measure includes the head has been raging for decades, if not centuries – it was even discussed in the House of Lords back in 1984.

There's some law on this too – when the Weights and Measures Act became law in 1985, part IV, section 43 declared that "in ascertaining the quantity of any beer or cider... the gas comprised in any foam on the beer or cider shall be disregarded."

That seems to suggest you're entitled to a full pint of liquid plus head – but confusingly, this section was then repealed in 1994, so the legislation no longer stands.

The BBPA told me this was because while some drinkers don't see the head as an important part of a pint, others see it as essential and also a sign of how good (or not) it is.

Since the 1960s, various legal cases regarding short measures of beer have ascertained that the head is intrinsic to a pint, but what hasn't been nailed down is the extent of that head.

So unfortunately while the law's clear that it's fair for your pint to include the head, there's no definitive answer on just how big it can be.

As you may remember from when we set out on this search for truth, justice and sufficient beer, due to the lack of clarity on pints rights provided by the law, the BBPA has its own guidelines for pulling a pint, more formally known as the Guidance Notes on the Dispense of Draught Beer by Free Flow and Hand Pull.

While the BBPA encourages the 20,000 pubs it represents to follow these, it says they're best practice and intended as reasonable guidelines that can be comfortably adopted across the broader hospitality industry. This is why they're backed by its fellow trade bodies, the Federation of Licensed Victuallers Associations (FLVA) and Scottish Licensed Trade Association (SLTA).

The guidance, which is based on the use of more traditional fill-to-the-brim glasses, states: "A measure of a beer served with a head must include a minimum of 95% liquid."

Now, if like me you like a good head on your beer, that's fine. But if you don't, then for every, say, 10 pints you buy, you're actually only getting nine and a half.

Or to put it another way, if you pay £4.75 for a pint of lager – the UK average as of April 2024 according to the Office for National Statistics – you're losing 24p in beer.

Ouch.

But the good news is that the guidelines also state: "Requests from customers for top-ups should be received with good grace and never refused, subject to avoiding spillage of liquid."

That sounds more like it.

So there you have it. Enjoy your (full) pint and, of course, as we always say, please be Drinkaware.