Keep in mind that the next time you have a company event if an employee has been drinking and has an auto accident, there is a very good chance of your company being sued.
I am not saying that it's right, I am just saying that is the way things are.
True. I am not a lawyer, but usually a person in senior management picks up the tab and then it is submitted back to the company for reimbursement. I suppose if something happened, the company could refuse to reimburse a charge and contend it was not a company sponsored event.