BBC News, Nottingham
BBCVape users are bulk-buying disposable items ahead of the incoming ban, shops in Nottingham have said.
Last year the government confirmed it was bringing in a ban on the sale of single-use disposable vapes in England and Wales, which will come into force on 1 June.
Despite sales of single-use vapes facing a minimum fine of £200, owning a disposable vape after Sunday will not be illegal.
Though refillable vapes and replacement flavour pods will still be widely available, some customers are stocking up on single-use versions while they still can.
Jack Leadbeater, 22, who works at Eco Vape on Exchange Walk in Nottingham, said a number of customers have been stockpiling single-use vapes.
“They’ve just been bulk-buying, really, making [sure] they can have them for as long as possible after the ban,” he said.
“With the ones that they’re getting, they’re just using them and then they don’t have to worry about them, they just chuck them away, whereas with the pods and stuff, a lot of people see it as a hassle and they don’t really want to go for that.”
Douglas Eccles, from Rustic Vapez on Mansfield Road, said he has been phasing out single-use disposables in favour of new styles that will still be legal to sell.
He said the ban “seems a good idea”, especially with new vapes having more recyclable parts, but said information on the changes has not been presented well to customers.
“Everyone’s panicking thinking all disposables are gone from Sunday, but it’s not going to go that way,” the 44-year-old said.
“It all comes back to shops explaining it properly to people – if you explain it to people properly, they understand it.
“A lot of people are bulk-buying them because a lot of shops are doing them really cheap because they know that any stock they’ve got from Sunday they’ve got to take off the shelves.
“At the end of the day it’s business, you don’t want to lose out.”
Ministers in England have said the ban is intended to protect children’s health and prevent environmental damage.
