Four Taranaki Retail Outlets Fail Compliance Test

31 January 2013

Four Taranaki retailers are facing possible fines after selling cigarettes to a person under 18 years of age.

Taranaki DHB’s Public Health staff visited 17 retail premises in Waitara and Hawera in mid January in a campaign to stop retailers selling tobacco to under age youths.

The premises targeted had all been previously visited by Health Protection and Promotion staff at which time the need for identification and age checks was reinforced.

Health promoter, Carly Twaddle, said staff at 13 of the premises visited had followed correct procedure and refused to sell cigarettes to the 16 year-old volunteer who was briefed to give their correct age when asked.

Miss Twaddle is contacting those retailers whose staff complied with the legislation to advise them of their employees’ performance.

However, four employees of the tobacco retailers visited sold cigarettes to the volunteer and reports on these cases will now be sent to the Ministry of Health in Wellington.

Miss Twaddle was disappointed at the four sales across Taranaki hoping that this will serve as a warning to all retailers that non compliance would not be tolerated.

“Further operations of this nature would be conducted on an ongoing basis. Employers and their staff members needed to ensure they were fully familiar with their obligations under the act.

“We need to work together to prevent young people from having access to cigarettes. We want shops to help us work towards our vision of a smokefree Taranaki.”

For more information please call
Sue Carrington
Media Adviser
Ph 021 367 789

Last updated: Thursday, January 31, 2013