Is Hookah Legal in London
No tobacco product may be lawfully supplied to persons under the age of 18. Since hookahs are usually shared, you need to check the age of the entire group and any friends who join them. It may be advisable to allow only persons over 18 years of age to enter the premises. We work closely with trade standards officials to ensure that the tobacco used is legal and therefore safe. We visit illegal hookah bars with the Metropolitan Police. During these visits, we can take the hookah pipe and tobacco as evidence, which are then used in the trial court to obtain a conviction. You can only sell tobacco products that have been legally imported into the UK – anything illegally imported will be confiscated by Trading Standards, HMRC or the police. The vast majority of hookah products containing tobacco will not be legally imported and the required tax will not have been paid on them. You can only sell hookah tobacco products that have been legally imported into the UK. We will want to see evidence that they are legal. So: The Council`s hookah policy is clear – illegal hookah deals are not tolerated in Tower Hamlets. Non-compliant companies can expect regular visits from the board and its partners until we are satisfied that the site is compliant with the Health Act 2006.
The smoke-free team regularly visits legal and illegal hookah bars. This is to ensure that hookah bar owners comply with the 2006 Health Act. “We`d still prefer to work with hookah bars to make sure they`re operating legally rather than prosecuting them, but café owners are more likely to comply with the law if they knew they might lose their license,” Blackburn said. If your company supplies hookah in water pipes to customers, you must do so legally. If you follow this guide, you can do so, but failure to do so may result in prosecution or confiscation of your pipes and hookah tobacco and your customers will be fined. Your business should post big notices that say: It is illegal to supply tobacco products to people under the age of 18. You must display them wherever you serve tobacco. All establishments that sell tobacco products must post large notices stating: “It is illegal to provide tobacco products to persons under the age of 18. This notice should be posted in areas where customers can purchase tobacco. We can provide copies of this notice upon request.
If you would like to make structural changes to your premises to allow smoking of the legal hookah, contact our planning and construction control sections. Council leaders said hookah was often imported illegally and sold duty-free, while ownership of premises was often secret, hampering the ability of councils and police to take effective action against them. If you can`t find a legal source of hookah tobacco, you can only legally sell herbal hookah. Having control or allowing people to smoke in an enclosed space, such as an illegal hookah bar, is a criminal offence. You could be fined and charged with the Council`s legal costs if found guilty. It is illegal to smoke hookah in an enclosed public space or a largely enclosed space. As with smoking a cigarette, smoking hookah/hookah is not allowed in public spaces or workplaces essentially and completely enclosed due to smoke-free laws. These smoking laws apply to hookahs regardless of whether the smoked hookah contains tobacco or not. So if your business doesn`t have access to a legal smoking area, you can`t provide hookah in hookahs. The law classifies hookah smoking in the same way as smoking and it is illegal to smoke hookah in enclosed and essentially enclosed spaces and structures on commercial premises. Consider these additional risks when conducting the fire risk assessment and emergency plan for your building. Call the London Fire Brigade Fire Brigade Fire Brigade on 020 8555 1200 for more information.
You must also: The Council and its partners will take steps to ensure that businesses comply with the law. It is important that hookah users are aware of health issues. A misleading but widespread belief is that smoking through a hookah “cleans” the smoke. Additional risks associated with providing hookah include infectious diseases, charcoal burning and spills. You need to think about these risks, and if you employ five or more people, you need to put the risks in writing. You need to train employees so they know how to control risks and act if something happens. The Council`s enforcement staff contribute to raising awareness of smoke-free legislation. Prosecution and the use of fines are considered a last resort. To make sure your business doesn`t sell to under-18s, you need to: Boards could then examine licensees before opening premises, more easily monitor hookah bars and cafes for harmful activity, seize equipment, or revoke licenses for repeat offenders who violate licence conditions or the law. Anti-smoking laws allow fines of up to £2,500, but these last more than a year and offer little deterrent to repeat offenders who can reopen under a different name.
If you operate a business that provides hookah in water pipes, you must comply with various laws, including: Since 1 July 2007, the Health Act 2006 prohibits smoking from all public interiors, workplaces and work vehicles. This website is protected by reCAPTCHA and Google`s privacy policy and terms of service apply. The law teaches to smoke hookah in the same way as cigarettes. Bolton City Council has ordered the owners of two shisha cafes to pay a total of £2,900 after customers were found smoking in largely enclosed areas. Hookah bars currently don`t need a license unless they serve alcohol, food or other regulated entertainment, and their number has tripled in a few years — half of the boards have at least one bar. Councils have called for a crackdown and new powers to crack down on “anarchic” hookah bars that flout smoke and fire regulations. The LGA pointed to recent cases, including a hookah café owner who was ordered to pay £2,255 by Redbridge council after customers were caught smoking inside during two separate visits by law enforcement officers. “The growing popularity of hookah bars and the way some of them operate lawless exposes the loopholes that exist in our outdated and inflexible licensing system,” said Simon Blackburn, Chair of the LGA`s Council of Safer and Stronger Communities. For details of your closest adviser to the Council, call the local health hotline on 020 7364 5000. Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalism One-time fines for selling tobacco to minors or smoking indoors Not a deterrent to fraudulent hookah bar operators whose ownership is hard to track, says Local Government Association Engage in stimulating conversations, follow other independent readers and see their responses Ask us now for advice on managing your business. Don`t wait until we have to take action against you. When you sign up, you also have limited access to premium articles, exclusive newsletters, comments, and virtual events with our top journalists.
Hookah customers usually share pipes. You must check the age of all smokers. It may be wise not to let children under the age of 18 into the building. The Local Government Association has called for a new licensing system for hookah bars after locals allowed patrons to smoke indoors and sell tobacco to under-18s. The licensing powers would also strengthen the ability of City Hall public health teams to ensure owners work with them to educate patrons on the misconception that smoking hookah is safer than smoking cigarettes, the LGA said. We will inspect your building and act if we need to make sure you comply with the law. This means that smoking (including hookah) is prohibited in all enclosed or “substantially closed” public places and workplaces such as pubs, restaurants, cafes, workplaces, schools and health facilities. “Essentially closed” rooms are buildings that may have a ceiling or roof with openings in the walls that make up less than half of the total area of the walls. This is called the “50% rule.” You should also consider additional risks when conducting the fire risk assessment and emergency plan for the site. For more information on these requirements, contact the London Fire Brigade Tower Hamlets fire safety team on 020 8555 1200. Emergency exits must be unlocked and clearly marked. “Smoke-free laws do not provide sufficient penalties to deter irresponsible hookah bar owners who make lucrative profits, meaning boards often have to conduct lengthy and costly investigations to crack down on the same bar over and over again.
If you are building a shelter for hookah users, a building permit may be required. Please contact the municipal government`s planning department for pre-construction advice. The British Heart Foundation points out that hookah tobacco contains cigarette tobacco and therefore nicotine, tar, carbon monoxide and heavy metals such as arsenic and lead. You cannot sell tobacco to anyone under the age of 18. A shelter must comply with the 50% wall rule. Premises must also have a building permit and a valid fire safety certificate, and must minimize noise, light pollution and exposure to second-hand smoke or smoke ingress in smoke-free areas.