Fireworks information for retailers

Important information for retailers who will be selling fireworks.

Legal requirements

The main legal requirements for the sale of fireworks are as follows:

• the sale of fireworks to anyone apparently under the age of 18 years is illegal (except for amorces, cracker snaps, novelty matches, party poppers and serpents, where the minimum age is 16 years)
• to inform anyone who is sold fireworks (other than caps, cracker snaps, novelty matches, party poppers, serpents, sparklers and throwdowns), that it is illegal to sell such fireworks to anyone under the age of 18 years and for anyone under the age of 18 years to possess such fireworks in a public place. This information shall be given by a prominently displayed notice in the premises, which measures at least 400 millimetres by 300 millimetres, with letters at least 16 millimetres high
• fireworks cannot be sold in the street or any public place
• all packets of sparklers must be labelled 'Warning: not to be given to children under five years of age'
• fireworks pre-packed in a selection box or pack must not be split up and sold individually
• all fireworks intended for use by the public must comply with British Standard 7114. Do not sell fireworks unless they are marked 'Complies with BS 7114: Part 2 1988), or for a box or pack, 'Contents comply with BS 7114: Part 2 1988'and the name and address of the manufacturer must not be removed from the firework's packaging.

Banned fireworks

The following fireworks are banned from sale to the public:

• small bangers
• larger bangers, including batteries such as Chinese crackers and combinations containing any type of banger
• 'category 4' fireworks. These are fireworks that are incomplete and are not intended for sale to the public
• mini-rockets
• aerial maroons, aerial shells, shell-in-mortars and maroon-in-mortars
• any firework with erratic flight e.g. squibs, jumping crackers and helicopters.

Underage sales

The owner of the business is legally responsible for the actions of staff so if staff sell to an under age child, the owner could be prosecuted as well.

The owner of the business should ensure that staff are fully aware of the requirements regarding the sale of fireworks.

Sales of fireworks to young people:

• don't rely on appearance - appearances can be deceptive in terms of age
• don't sell to a child even if they say they have an adult's permission to buy
• do ask for proof of age if you are in any doubt (such as: birth certificate, driving licence, passport or a proof of age card - CitizenCard, Validate Card or Prove-It card)
• always check that the person providing proof of age is the person shown on the document, and always check the date of birth shown as different documents may be issued to different age groups. Remember, no proof - no sale
• exercise your right not to sell if you have any suspicion that the person is under 18 years of age
• exercise your right to challenge the age of any child and ask their year of birth
• record a refused sale in a Refusal Sales Book to show you are taking reasonable steps to avoid selling to a child.

Newham Trading Standards Team

Please note that the trading standards team regularly use volunteers to carry out test purchases from retailers of age-restricted products to ensure compliance with the law. Test purchasing is carried out in accordance with government guidelines.

Volunteers will not lie about their age, so the diligent retailer who complies with the law has nothing to worry about. In addition to this type of enforcement, we provide information and advice for businesses about the sale of age-restricted products.