Report illegal tobacco or vapes
What's the real cost of cheap tobacco?
The sale of illegal tobacco makes it easier for children and young people to start smoking and get addicted at a young age. It’s often sold much cheaper than legal tobacco, and the availability makes it harder for people to quit smoking.
All tobacco is harmful, but the composition of illegal tobacco is unknown and unlikely to meet UK safety standards. It is likely that illegal tobacco would not be fire safe, meaning it would not extinguish by itself if left unattended, making it more likely to cause a fire.
Legal tobacco should be in plain green packaging, with safety warning pictures and health warnings in English. Any packages that do not have this will be illegal for sale.
What are illegal vapes?
The regulations cover single-use and refillable vapes that contain nicotine. The tank size should be no more than 2ml in capacity, which equates to approximately 600 puffs. Anything more than this would require a larger tank size and would be illegal.
If the product contains nicotine, the packaging must also be labelled with: “This product contains Nicotine, which is an addictive substance.” The nicotine level should not have a strength greater than 20mg/ml.
To protect the community, Trading Standards Officers carry out unannounced visits to premises across Central Bedfordshire. Any illegal or unsafe products will be seized, and traders may be prosecuted and fined.