The Disposable Ban Is Nearly Here!
We are just a few short weeks away from June 1st, the date on which the disposables ban (announced by Parliament late last year) will come into full force.
Anyone found to be selling disposable vapes after that could face a £200 fine.
Further restrictions on flavour options and packaging details are still yet to be decided, as the Tobacco & Vapes Bill doesn’t come into effect until October 2026.
The disposables ban is, on balance, a good thing, and will help with preventing more damage to the environment and hopefully reducing the number of teen vapers in the UK. That being said, we at DarkStar have expressed concern in the past that the legislation within the upcoming Tobacco & Vapes Bill will incentivise what we have described as ‘modified disposables’ - devices that will fit the legal requirements of the ban, but will have been designed with the same use in mind as a typical disposable vape.
Therefore, is it possible that the government will be able to say that the crackdown on disposables has gone very well, and that youth vaping has dropped dramatically - after all, this is what numbers and statistics will show. However, in reality disposable retailers will have just managed to pivot their audience to new devices that aren’t technically disposable, but will be treated as such.
This also calls into question the fact that so much of the 2026 bill’s legislation includes taxing e-liquid at higher amounts per ml, which will affect DIY vapers much more than the casual vaper who has shifted from disposables to quasi-disposables.
The 2ml of liquid in modified disposables will be taxed at £0.44. This brings the retail price up from £4-5 to £4.44-5.44. This is in stark contrast to the sky-high tax rate for Short Fills which, at a staggering £26.40 tax rate, will bring Short Fills up to nearly £40 at retail. This will turn smokers away from using DIY e-liquids as a tool in their journey to quitting.
If the ban is as successful as predicted in curbing youth vaping, could the government take it as a sign to toughen up restrictions in the 2026 bill?Beverage and fruity flavours could be at risk if the government decides that banning them would be the next step in discouraging under 18s from vaping. We’d like to think not, but one thing that is certain is that nothing is off the table.
Let us know what you think in the comments.
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