Shop visits before the ban on displaying new vaping products

Retailers on the Isle of Man have “not indicated” they will struggle to comply with new rules banning under-18s from using vaping products, a consumer watchdog has said.

Under the Vaporising Products Act 2024, the public display and advertising of these products in places where persons under the age of 18 have access will be prohibited from 1 September.

Office of Fair Trading (OF) chairman Tim Glover said retailers had been visited by the trading standards team to provide advice on the new rules.

During the visits, entrepreneurs were given warning signs for minors, which they were to display to inform customers about the new age restrictions.

“Fully compliant”

Mr Glover said advice given during the visits covered the types of lockers, portal systems and cabinets that could be used, as well as cost-effective measures to avoid unnecessary expenditure.

Each retailer was asked whether it would be able to “fully comply” with the deadline, and no company “indicated it would not be able to meet it,” he said.

He confirmed that retailers would be visited again by members of the trading standards team in the last two weeks of August to confirm whether they were prepared for the display ban.

He added that in the first week of September, there will be a third visit to companies selling vaping products to check whether they are complying with the new regulations.

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