Big Changes to Reward Points & Discounts

Dear DarkStar Customers,

If you've tried to use a discount code or a reward voucher with us since 29 October, you'll have found that it no longer works. I need to explain why, and what it means for your points.

A new law came into force at midnight on 29 October

The Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 brought in a set of new rules on 29 October. One of them, section 15, makes it a criminal offence to give away vaping or nicotine products, or to sell them at a "substantial discount", where the effect is to promote them. Vouchers and discount codes are covered too. The Act counts anything that can be redeemed for a product or a benefit, physical or electronic, as a coupon.

The difficulty is that the law doesn't say what "substantial" means. There's no percentage or threshold in the Act. A £2 voucher doesn't sound like much, but on a £5 item it's 40% off, and I can't say with any confidence that a court wouldn't see that as substantial.

This is criminal law rather than civil, and the penalties go as far as prison time. I'm not prepared to take that risk with the business or with the people who work here, so we've gone with the cautious option.

What we've done

We've switched off every discount code and every active reward voucher on the site.

Your reward points are still being earned on every order, the same as before. Nobody's balance has been touched and nobody is losing points. The only change is that you can't redeem them for the moment. [We've also paused points expiry, so nothing will run out while redemption is switched off.]

If you'd already turned points into a voucher

Some of you had already swapped points for a voucher before the change and hadn't used it yet. Those vouchers were switched off along with everything else, which I know is frustrating.

The points aren't lost. Email us at info@darkstar.co.uk with the email address on your account, and the voucher code if you have it, and we'll put the points back.

I did try to find a way to do this for everyone in one go, but our rewards system doesn't allow it, so it has to be done account by account. Sorry for the extra step. We'll work through them as quickly as we can.

Orders placed with a code

We're checking every order that comes in. If a code or voucher somehow gets through on an order placed from 29 October onwards, we'll have to cancel it and refund it in full, and we'll email you to explain. You're welcome to place the order again at the normal price. As far as we can tell none have slipped through so far, but I'd rather you heard it from me now than found out later.

What's next for your points

We don't want to leave your points sitting there with nothing to spend them on, so we're adding products to the site that sit outside the new rules. You'll be able to redeem points against these.

We'll probably start with a kit that makes mixing easier: accurate scales, bottles and dropper caps, measuring syringes, beakers, gloves and labels. Some of it is already on the site and the rest will follow over the coming weeks. We'll announce it here and in the banner at the top of the site when it's ready.

Points can't be spent on anything the law covers. That rules out e-liquid, concentrates, shortfills, nicotine shots, bases, hardware, coils and pods, and also nicotine pouches, which the Act treats the same way as vapes.

Discount codes in general

The same rules apply to discount codes, so for now you won't get codes from us on vaping products. That includes the various codes some of you will have had in the past. Free samples and free gifts with orders have stopped as well.

The law does still allow normal pricing. Shops can still charge less per bottle when you buy more, and clear old stock at a reduced price. So instead of codes, we'll keep putting the value into the prices. You've already seen the start of that with the price cuts on Bottle Shots, One Shots and Nicotine Shots earlier this month.

Gift cards bought from us still work as normal, as they're a way of paying rather than a discount.

You may see other shops still running codes. They may have read the law differently to us, or taken advice we haven't seen. We've asked for legal advice of our own, and if it tells us we can safely bring some of this back, we will.

Thank you

I know this isn't what anyone wanted to read, especially those of you who've been saving points for a while. More changes are coming in 2027, including a ban on most vape advertising, and I'll keep writing these updates so you know where things stand.

If you have a question about your points, a voucher or an order, email us and we'll sort it out.

Rob Scammell - Managing Director

DarkStar

Reward points continue to be earned on eligible purchases. Redemption is paused while we bring in a range of products that points can legally be spent on. Points from deactivated vouchers will be restored on request