Three major UK tobacco manufacturers have jointly invested in a proof-of-age compliance scheme for independent retailers

The scheme will see thousands of retailers in the UK visited by 18 or 19 year old test purchasers who will check the retailers’ adoption of the ‘No ID, No Sale!’ policy when dealing with purchasers who are only just of legal age to buy tobacco

Stores identified as being ‘at risk’ will be offered free-of-charge, accredited training from former Trading Standards officers

The scheme is now being rolled out across Wales, following a successful pilot in the North West of England in 2014

As part of the Responsible Tobacco Retailing programme, independent retailers across Wales will be mystery shopped to see if they are ‘at risk’ of potentially selling tobacco products to people under the age of 18, and will be offered free training support if they are. The accredited training is designed to cover all age-restricted products, not just tobacco, and can count towards a Level 2 NVQ in preventing under age sales.

The programme follows a successful pilot in the North West of England and will be rolled out in other areas of the UK over the coming years with support from three of the major UK tobacco manufacturers. The results of the pilot scheme show that the number of retailers considered ‘at risk’ fell from 52 per cent to 45 per cent.

Tony Allen, managing director of Under Age Sales, which specialises in helping retailers prevent under age sales, said of the new compliance scheme: “First and foremost, the purpose of the Responsible Tobacco Retailing programme is to reduce youth access to tobacco, an issue which all involved parties are in agreement must be tackled. We are by no means trying to catch retailers out with the test purchases; far from it – we simply want to identify those that may be at risk of selling tobacco to children and help them take the necessary steps to protect themselves.

“By empowering and enabling retailers to meet their obligations and become gatekeepers to stop under 18s accessing tobacco, we can all work together to raise standards across the board and make a real difference to communities across Wales and the rest of the UK.”

Paul Baxter, chief executive of the National Federation of Retail Newsagents (NFRN), added: “NFRN members make every effort to retail responsibly but it’s not easy for shopkeepers to judge the ages of people coming into their stores, so making sure you stay within the law when it comes to underage sales is a constant challenge. We therefore welcome this new initiative, which forms part of the Responsible Tobacco Retailing programme, and would encourage any retailer who is identified as at risk to take advantage of the free of charge training."