Health NZ Doubles Store Checks to Curb Illegal Cigarette and Vape Sales to Minors

Health agencies more than doubled the number of store visits and controlled purchase operations last year to curb illegal sales of cigarettes and vapes to minors, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello said today.

In the 12 months ending 31 December, more than 4,500 controlled purchase operations (CPOs) were carried out across New Zealand - up from around 2,000 the previous year, Ms Costello says.

Encouragingly, around 90 per cent of retailers were compliant with requirements, checking IDs and not selling to minors. However, a small number continue to break the rules.

In the past year, 489 infringement fines were issued, compared to 198 issued the year before. The proportion of stores found to be non-compliant, about one in ten, has remained steady over the past two years.

These stores are increasingly being issued infringement notices, each carrying a fine of up to $2,000, which can be issued without the need for court proceedings.

The boost in compliance activity has been supported by the recruitment of 18 additional Compliance Officers by Health NZ, most of them in the past year, Ms Costello says.

Efforts to reduce harm to young people from smoking and vaping were also further strengthened last year, with the passing of legislation significantly increasing penalties for non-compliance, banning disposable vapes and limiting how vaping products can be displayed in stores and online.

The Minister said that the Ministry of Health was now regularly reporting on this compliance work with quarterly updates available on its website: https://www.health.govt.nz/regulation-legislation/vaping-herbal-smoking-and-smokeless-tobacco/compliance-monitoring