Legal Update - 1 June 2025
The Environmental Protection (Single-use Vapes) (England) Regulations 2024 and the Environmental Protection (Single-use Vapes) (Wales) Regulations 2024 are in force from 1 June 2025.
According to industry research, over 360 million single-use vapes were placed on the market in the UK in 2023 and it was estimated that almost 5 million single-use vapes were either littered or thrown away in general waste every week in the UK.
The Regulations aim to reduce the environmental impact of single use and disposable vapes (defined within the Regulations to mean a vape that is not refillable nor rechargeable) by making it illegal for businesses to sell or supply them.
In the first instance, an offence is to be investigated and enforced via civil means, such as stop notices, fixed penalty fines, compliance notices or enforcement undertakings. Failure to comply with enforcement undertakings can lead to criminal proceedings, and should an individual be guilty of an offence under the Regulations an unlimited fine and/or prison sentence could be handed down.
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