Shops selling cigs to underage youngsters

The evidence obtained by the underage volunteers

Two underage volunteers successfully purchased four packs of cigarettes from four different premises in a targeted test purchasing exercise this month.

The volunteers, aged 17 and 15, visited 20 premises over two days during the survey. Six of the shops visited requested ID from the underage volunteers, while nine asked their age. A further shop said that they were out of stock.

If a retailer is unsure of someone’s age, they should ask to see a form of photographic ID to prove the customer’s age.

The premises visited were chosen as a result of complaints and intelligence received alleging underage sales or where previous sales had taken place. Several randomly chosen members of the Responsible Retailer Scheme were also visited.