Retailers across the forecourt and convenience sector are being urged to feed into the government’s consultation into proposed changes to vape products and sales, which include mandatory plain packaging and hidden displays.
Ministers want to make vaping less attractive to young people, so in addition to a new tax that from October will add £2.20 to every 10ml of vape refills (effectively one replacement pod), the Department of Health and Social Care is proposing that vape products are treated in a manner similar to tobacco , hidden from display and sold in plain packaging.
Other potential restrictions include a ban on “concept and sensory” flavour names, with only “recognisable” flavours such as “apple” allowed, while the government is also proposing the vape devices themselves can only be finished in white, black or grey colours.
Tolga Kilic, commercial director at BAT UK, comments:
“Retailers have invaluable experience of how these products are sold and how regulations work in practice. Their feedback can help ensure that any future measures are sensible and avoid unintended consequences for responsible businesses.”
Kilic says BAT “strongly encourage[s] retailers to take part in the consultation and make their voices heard before the government takes final decisions.”
While the firm supports “robust” measures to prevent underage vaping, Kilic considers that any new regulation “must also ensure that adult smokers remain aware of, and have access to, reduced-risk alternatives to cigarettes”, and that hiding vape displays and limiting products “communications could have significant implications for retailers and for adult consumers”.
The consultation is open until 11:59pm on October 2, 2026. A full list of the proposed measures can be found here, while feedback can be provided here.
