It has now been one month since the introduction of the ban on disposable vapes, which came into effect on June 1st. Since its implementation, it has been illegal for retailers to sell, offer to sell, or have in their possession for sale disposable vaping products in their shop or online.
As a result of the ban, retailers have had to make big changes to their stores and vape stock to ensure that they only sell vapes that are both refillable and rechargeable. Retailers with any leftover stock must store disposable products away from the shop floor, making sure that they are clearly separated from other goods and labelled as not for sale.
ACS is reminding retailers about our “Selling Vapes Responsibly” guide, which is available to download here and highlights everything you need to know about your responsibilities when selling and recycling vapes.
The guide is backed by Surrey & Buckinghamshire Trading Standards and is part of our industry leading Assured Advice scheme, meaning it is used widely by enforcement bodies and should help to cover you in all aspects of regulatory compliance. Assured Advice means that when different authorities have different interpretations of the law, our primary authority (Surrey & Bucks) overrides those opinions and backs your in-store processes, as long as you follow the guidance.
The guide covers the following key areas:
- Enforcement and record keeping
- Communicating to customers about the ban
- How to recognise illegitimate products and underage sales
- Vape recycling
The ban was introduced to deal with the millions of disposable vapes that are being thrown away every month. Vapes, both disposable and rechargeable, contain lithium batteries and electrical components that need to be recycled, and can risk fires if thrown away. Over the last month, retailers have raised concerns that the new vapes that they’re selling are being turned into disposable vapes as there is very little availability of refill pods.
ACS spoke to ITV news about the impact of the ban to date in a piece available here.
You can also read ACS chief executive James Lowman’s reflections on the effectiveness of the vape ban so far here.
