£1,500 for a packet of tobacco: Oswestry retailer successfully prosecuted for selling tobacco to minors
Ronald Lewis of Oswestry was yesterday (Thursday 1 October 2015) ordered by Shrewsbury Magistrates Court to pay nearly £1,500 after pleading guilty to selling a packet of hand-rolling tobacco to a 16-year-old girl.
Lewis, aged 83, owns and runs the shop RK&MM Lewis in Upper Church Street, Oswestry. He was investigated and prosecuted by the Shropshire Council’s public protection team as the result of his selling hand-rolling tobacco in February 2015 to a 16-year-old girl who was acting as a volunteer for public protection officers. Intelligence had been received by the public protection team prior to the exercise, indicating that minors were regularly purchasing tobacco products from this premises.
Grant Tunnadine, Shropshire Council’s investigations team manager for public protection, said after the case:
“This should hopefully serve as an important reminder to all retailers who sell age- restricted products such as tobacco and alcohol to ensure they are satisfied that the buyer is old enough. In this case Mr Lewis did nothing to address the age of the buyer, who had been challenged for ID and refused in many other shops on the same day. It remains a priority for us to ensure that young people are not able to purchase tobacco products before they are legally entitled to.”
Mal Price, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for public protection, added:
“The council is determined to play its part in reducing smoking, which includes preventing the sale of tobacco products to those who are underage. ‘Challenge 25’ is a very simple policy to adopt, and has proved to be a very effective method of preventing underage sales. Any customer who appears to be aged 25 or under should be asked to prove that they are legally old enough to purchase the tobacco. I would urge all retailers to adopt a Challenge 25 policy to ensure they only sell to adults.”
Shropshire Council encourages individuals to contact the Citizens Advice Consumer helpline on 08454 04 05 06 if they have any suspicions that retailers may be selling age- restricted products to minors. Information can be given anonymously and will always be treated in line with the council’s information governance policies.
Shropshire-based traders who wish to seek further advice on their legal obligations or who also wish to report any suspicions that offences may be being committed by other businesses can do so by contacting public protection’s prevention and early intervention team on 0345 678 9000. General business advice and support can also be found on the council’s website at http://shropshire.gov.uk/business/.
