UK Offence Report

Offence: supply of single-use vapes

regulation 4(1) of The Environmental Protection (Single-use Vapes) (Wales) Regulations 2024

This offence was read from the text as made, and no revised version was available, so a later revocation could not be ruled out. Check the current text at legislation.gov.uk.

What the provision says

1 A person commits an offence if they— a supply a single-use vape, b offer to supply a single-use vape, or c have in their possession for supply a single-use vape.

Text as made, from legislation.gov.uk. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.

Who it binds, and what has to be proved

Binds
a person
Conduct
breaching the provision
Fault element
Strict liability
Burden of proof
No statutory defence — prosecution proves everything

The prosecution must prove that the conduct happened. This is a strict liability offence as drafted: the provision uses no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence, so there is no need to show that a person meant to do it, knew about it, or was careless.

Intention, knowledge and carelessness are irrelevant to guilt. They may still matter a great deal to sentence.

The provision states no defence, so the prosecution bears the burden on every element of the offence.

Classifier’s reasoning: no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence in the offence or its provision.

What would breach regulation 4(1)?

These are illustrations, not law. They are generated from the provision’s own words to show the shape of the offence. Whether any particular conduct is caught depends on the full text, on any amendment since, and on the facts.

  1. Doing what the provision prohibits, or failing to do what it requires under the Environmental Protection (Single-use Vapes) (Wales) Regulations 2024.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Either way — magistrates’ court or Crown Court
Maximum fine
Unlimited
Standard scale
Level 5
Maximum prison (summary)
1 year
Maximum prison (on indictment)
2 years

level 5 is unlimited in England and Wales for offences committed on or after 12 March 2015 (LASPO 2012 s.85, S.I. 2015/664); imprisonment expressed as the general limit in a magistrates' court (Sentencing Act 2020 s.224(1A)); 12 months as at 2025-06-01. Note the limit is keyed to the date of conviction, while the standard scale is keyed to the date of the offence, so a single date is an approximation here; imprisonment expressed as the general limit in a magistrates' court (Sentencing Act 2020 s.224(1A)); 12 months as at 2025-06-01. Note the limit is keyed to the date of conviction, while the standard scale is keyed to the date of the offence, so a single date is an approximation here; imprisonment expressed as the general limit in a magistrates' court (Sentencing Act 2020 s.224(1A)); 12 months as at 2025-06-01. Note the limit is keyed to the date of conviction, while the standard scale is keyed to the date of the offence, so a single date is an approximation here.

Sentencing

Offences of this kind are usually sentenced under the guidelines below. This is a mapping by subject, not a finding about this provision, and the links go to a search of the Sentencing Council’s own site.

Prosecution figures

No published per-offence figure was found for this provision, and it could not be matched to a Ministry of Justice offence code. Offences created by statutory instrument very largely do not have one. Absence of a figure is not evidence that the offence is unused.

Status and lifecycle

Current status
Status not determined
Made
11 December 2024
In force from
1 June 2025
Extent
Not stated

How this was established: read from the text as made; no revised version available, so later revocation could not be ruled out.

What the instrument is for

(This note is not part of the Regulations) — the explanatory note published with the instrument, © Crown copyright.

These Regulations, which apply in Wales, prohibit the supply of single-use vapes. They are made under powers conferred by section 140 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (“the 1990 Act”) and section 62 of the Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008 (“the 2008 Act”). The 1990 Act allows the Welsh Ministers to prohibit the use, supply, and storage of specified articles to prevent them from causing pollution of the environment and harm to the health of animals. It also allows them to confer powers corresponding to those under section 108 of the Environment Act 1995 on authorised persons, including powers of entry, examination, and investigation, for taking photographs and samples, and the search and seizure of documents. The 2008 Act allows the Welsh Ministers, when making secondary legislation creating a criminal offence, to make any provision which could be made under Part 3 of the 2008 Act. This includes the imposition of the following civil sanctions: fixed monetary penalties, variable monetary penalties, compliance notices, non-compliance penalties, stop notices and enforcement undertakings. Part 1 of these Regulations includes interpretation provisions, such as the definitions of “supply” (regulation 2) and of a “single-use vape” (regulation 3). Part 2 of these Regulations sets out two offences. The first prohibits the supply, or offer for supply, of single-use vapes (regulation 4). Breach of these provisions is an offence. The second makes it an offence to obstruct enforcement officers from exercising their powers or to fail to comply with their requests (regulation 5). A defence of due diligence is provided for in regulation 6. Part 3 is concerned with enforcement and investigatory powers. It introduces the “authorised purpose” for which an enforcement officer’s powers must be exercised, being to determine whether an offence has been committed or a requirement of a civil sanction has been contravened (regulation 7). The enforcement powers are contained in regulations 9 and 10 and include powers of entry, examination, and investigation, taking photographs and samples, and the search and seizure of documents. Regulation 11 provides for compensation associated with these powers. Regulation 12 provides a power for the Welsh Ministers to direct that certain single-use vapes be treated as waste. Part 3 also introduces a civil sanctions regime to enable regulators to impose a range of civil sanctions in relation to the Part 2 offences (regulation 8 and the Schedule). These are: fixed monetary penalties, variable monetary penalties, compliance notices, stop notices, enforcement cost recovery notices and non-compliance penalties. Regulators may also accept enforcement undertakings under these provisions. The Regulations make provision for the procedure relating to these civil sanctions and the available appeal mechanisms. Failure to comply with a stop notice is an offence (paragraph 18 of the Schedule). All appeals relating to a civil sanction are to the First-tier Tribunal. Regulators are able to recover the costs of enforcement in the case of compliance notices and stop notices, and must issue guidance about their use of enforcement cost recovery notices (paragraph 29 of the Schedule). Part 3 provides for the publication of information on enforcement action taken by regulators (regulation 13). Regulation 14 provides that guidance relating to the use of civil sanctions must be prepared and consulted on, and specifies information to be included in such guidance. Part 4 contains supplementary provision for review of the Regulations (regulation 15). The Welsh Ministers’ Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result, a regulatory impact assessment has been prepared as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations. A copy can be obtained from the Welsh Government, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NQ.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

Other offences in the same instrument

How this was identified as an offence

Everything above rests on the judgement that this provision creates a criminal offence, rather than mentioning one. That judgement is made by rule, from the words of the provision, and this is the rule that made it — with a confidence of 0.92.

Basis
the provision says a person “commits an offence”
Confidence
0.92 of 1.00

A provision that states a penalty for an offence created elsewhere can read very like one that creates an offence, and the rules can mistake the one for the other. If the text quoted above sets a penalty for something made an offence by another provision, treat the classification on this page with that in mind, and read the instrument.

Check the source