Underage Vaping

Is Underage Vaping a Problem?

In the UK, the legal vaping age is 18, just as it is for smoking cigarettes. This means that you cannot and should not purchase or use vapes if you are under the age of 18, as this is an illegal act. Of course, this is not cast iron because it is easy for people to get around it, but the age limits are there for a reason. If you go on a vaping site, including ours, you will notice that you are asked to confirm your age. Clicking the wrong button and saying you're over 18 when you're not is possible but not necessarily advisable and something we hope to discourage.

Why is it Over 18?

We are often asked why the age limit for vaping is over 18. It is much safer than smoking, and advocated as a means of giving up smoking so if it isn't dangerous why do we insist but customers are over the age of 18? Vaping can just be a flavoured liquid start many e-liquids come with a nicotine content. This is how people make the transition from smoking traditional cigarettes to vaping. They start with a higher nicotine concentration, and gradually wean themselves off and cut down by purchasing e-liquids with lower nicotine content. Nicotine is an addictive drug, and that instantly means we are legally obliged to ensure it does not get into the hands of people under the age of 18.

Bending the Rules Can Cause Issues

In an attempt to bend the rules various irresponsible providers have set up and are happy to deal with teenagers under the age of consent, thankfully most of these are in the US not the UK. Unfortunately, in America this led to some problems and health issues which potentially damaged the reputation of vaping as an industry. In these cases, it's nothing to do with the safety of vaping but the illegality of dodgy vape liquid's that had chemicals that did not belong. Vaping should be an enjoyable and safe pass time, which is why we prefer and support the over 18 reasoning. It would be wrong to encourage addiction at a young age nicotine is highly addictive and it was certainly irresponsible and dangerous for the companies to be knowingly selling substandard e-liquids just because kids were prepared to spend money on them.

It is our belief, that if all vape retailers in the UK stick together and insist on the over eighteens policy we protect and bolster the industry as a whole rather than damaging it. We hope that customers will understand the importance and the reasoning behind this decision. So, we hope not to see any customers trying to pass for 18 when they aren't and not see any over eighteens buying goods deliberately to distribute to younger customers. Sadly, from time to time we do hear of vaping becoming an issue in schools which does mean the system has failed in some places and those below the age of consent are managing to get their hands on equipment and juices.