Trading standards leaflets

Tobacco and children

Consumer laws control the quality and safety of goods and services, and in specific cases, goods cannot be supplied to anyone below a certain age - for tobacco products, this age is 18 years.

Cigarettes must only be sold in quantities of at least 10 and in their original packaging. A notice must be displayed stating it is illegal to sell tobacco products to under-18s.

Young people should always be asked for proof of their age.

In the guide
What the law says
Cigarette vending machines
Judging a buyer's age
Cigarette lighter refills
Matches and lighters
What you can do now

What the law says:

• you must not sell tobacco or cigarette papers to anyone under 18 - 'tobacco' is defined widely and, in addition to tobacco for smoking, includes tobacco products for oral or nasal use (for example, snuff), and smoking mixtures intended as a substitute for tobacco (for example, herbal cigarettes)
• if this requirement is breached, the member of staff who made the sale can be held responsible, and so can the owner of the business
• you must only sell cigarettes in quantities of at least ten and in their original packaging
• you must display a notice that states 'it is illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone under the age of 18' - the notice has to be readily visible at the point of sale, and its size and layout is defined by law - your local trading standards service or your tobacco supplier should be able to provide a notice for you to use
• if you employ children in your business, it is not illegal for them to sell tobacco products, provided of course that the customer is not under 18 - however, leaving unsupervised children selling tobacco is not recommended as they may find it difficult to refuse to sell to their own age group

Cigarette vending machines
Under the Protection from Tobacco (Sales from Vending Machines) (England) Regulations 2010 it is an offence to allow anyone to purchase cigarettes direct from an automatic vending machine. Should a sale take place the person who controls or is concerned with the management of the premises commits the offence.

Any machines still on the premises can only be used for storage where the public do not have access to them (such as behind the bar) and must not display any advertising material.

Judging a buyer's age
Always ask young people to produce proof of their age. Trading standards services and the Government support the national Proof of Age Standards Scheme (PASS). You can be confident that a card issued under the scheme and bearing the PASS hologram is an acceptable proof of age. There are a number of card issuers in the scheme - visit the PASS website for more information.

Card issuers may supply material for you to display in your shop, telling young people where they can obtain a card. This way, if you have cause to refuse a sale, you can give youngsters some positive information.

Photocard driving licences and passports are also acceptable as proof of age.

If you, or any of your staff, doubt whether a customer is 18 or over, or whether their ID is genuine, refuse to sell them cigarettes. You don't have to give a reason, and allowing them to persuade you against your better judgement could lead you to commit a criminal offence. It is not an offence for children to buy cigarettes, only for you to sell them to children.

Cigarette lighter refills
Under the Cigarette Lighter Refill (Safety) Regulations 1999 it is an offence to supply any cigarette lighter refill canisters containing butane to anyone under 18 years of age. This is because of the potential for abuse by 'sniffing' the gas, which can be extremely dangerous. See our leaflet 'Cigarette lighter refills and solvents' for further details.

Matches and lighters
It is not illegal to sell matches or lighters to children. However, it is recommended that you do not sell these items to children, who are unlikely to have a legitimate use for them.

What you can do now
Keep a copy of this page. Explain the law to each of your employees who deals with the public.

If you are caught selling tobacco to a child, you would normally be asked to attend a formal interview. Trading standards officers would then assess whether you had taken all reasonable steps to avoid committing the offence.

The law recognises that, despite your best efforts, mistakes can be made. It is advisable to keep a refusals book to show that your procedures and training are working and that you do refuse to sell tobacco to children. A refusals book would normally contain a record of the date and time of any refusal, the member of staff responsible, and brief details of the attempted purchase. A specimen refusal log is attached below.

Refusal log (Word 31KB)
Refusal log (PDF 109KB)

You should also keep a record of any training you have given to your employees.

These laws exist to safeguard the health of young people - offenders may be prosecuted without warning. If in doubt, say 'no' - it could save you a heavy fine.

Please note
This leaflet is not an authoritative interpretation of the law and is intended only for guidance. Please contact us for further information.

Relevant legislation
Children and Young Persons Act 1933
Children and Young Persons (Protection From Tobacco) Act 1991
Cigarette Lighter Refill (Safety) Regulations 1999
Protection from Tobacco (Sales from Vending Machines) (England) Regulations 2010

Last reviewed/updated: December 2011

© 2012 itsa Ltd on behalf of the Trading Standards Institute.