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Key contacts

Trading standards (business)
Essex County Council
New Dukes Way Office
2 Beaufort Road
Dukes Park Industrial Estate
Chelmsford, CM2 6PS

Telephone: 0845 603 7626

0845 calls to Essex County Council are charged at BT landline standard rate. Please check with your provider as other tariffs may vary.

Age-restricted goods

Certain goods can only be legally sold to people who are above a specific age. Retailers are responsible for ensuring that customers are not below these ages, are entitled to ask for proof of age and should refuse to sell goods to customers they believe are underage. There are various penalties in place for businesses that are found to be in breach of the law.

The goods that are subject to age restrictions are as follows:

Alcohol

Alcohol must not be sold to, delivered to, or supplied to anyone under the age of 18.
On all licensed premises, it is an offence to do any of the following:

  • To sell alcohol to anyone under the age of 18
  • To allow the sale of alcohol to anyone under the age of 18
  • To buy or attempt to buy alcohol if you are under 18
  • To buy or attempt to buy alcohol for someone who is under 18

The only exceptions to these rules are where:

  • The person making the purchase is aged 18 or over
  • The person consuming the alcohol is aged 16 or 17 and the alcohol is beer, wine or cider and it is purchased or supplied for consumption at a table meal on relevant premises and the individual is accompanied at the meal by an individual of age 18 or over
The sale of liqueur chocolates is restricted to those aged 16 and above. 

Cigarettes and tobacco products

It is illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone under the age of 18.
Tobacco products include:
 
  • Cigarettes
  • Loose Tobacco
  • Chewing tobacco
  • Cigarette Papers

Matches are not included. 

Lighter refills and solvents

It is illegal to sell lighter refills and solvents to anyone under the age of 18.

All cigarette lighters sold within the EU must be child resistant. 

Fireworks

It is illegal to sell fireworks to anyone under the age of 18.

The following exceptions apply:

  • Caps – can be sold to anyone aged 16 and over
  • Party poppers – can be sold to anyone aged 16 and over
  • Novelty matches – can be sold to anyone aged 16 and over
  • Throw downs – can be sold to anyone aged 16 and over

Knives

It is illegal to sell knives and similar items (axes, blades) to anyone under the age of 18.

Lottery tickets and scratch cards

It is illegal to sell any lottery ticket or scratch card to anyone under the age of 16. It is also illegal for anyone under the age of 16 to sell a lottery ticket.

Paints

It is illegal to sell aerosol paint to anyone under the age of 16.

Petroleum on licensed premises

It is a breach of license conditions to sell petrol to anyone under the age of 16.

No attendants should be under 16, and no one under the age of 18 should be left in charge of a filling station.

Video recordings and games

Sale of these items is restricted to the age classification marked on the item. Where these are classified by age, it is illegal for a retailer to sell or rent to anyone who is younger than the classification age. This category includes any moving pictures which are stored by any device capable of storing data electronically. Examples include videos, DVDs and computer games.