In the coming weeks, many consumers will be purchasing fireworks in the run up to the New Year celebrations. Convenience retailers, with permission from their local authority, are able to sell fireworks, however there are a number of compliance rules that must be followed.

ACS has produced an Assured Advice guide for ‘Selling Fireworks’. The guide provides extensive information about the laws and guidelines regarding the sale and storage of fireworks. Some of the essential tips have been outlined below. For the full guide, information about ACS Assured Advice and how you can sign up can be found here: http://www.acs.org.uk/advice.

In August, new fireworks legislation came into effect which changed firework retailer’s record keeping practices and the required displayed signage. If you are selling fireworks, you are required to keep a record of who you bought your fireworks from for the last ten years and keep ten years’ records when selling fireworks on to other businesses.

In addition, the new legislation means that the statutory firework notice you display needs to be changed to state: “It is illegal to sell category F2 fireworks or category F3 fireworks to anyone under the age of 18”; and “It is illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to possess category F2 fireworks or category F3 fireworks in a public place.” Any old notices must now be removed and replaced.

Selling fireworks is a highly regulated area, so you will need to know exactly how to store, display and sell them correctly to remain on the right side of the law. To store fireworks, you should keep them in their transport boxes, sealed with tape and in a dedicated store room or in a fire resistant store cupboard, container or cabinet. They should be stored in a dry area, away from light fittings, electric supplies and flammable items.

Legally, you can only stock fireworks that comply with European safety standards and carry the CE mark. In addition, only fireworks which are correctly labelled with the details of the manufacturer and importer can be sold to customers. This is all to ensure that the fireworks are safe and regulated to prevent dangerous, unexpected explosions both in store and after being sold to consumers.

All fireworks carry an age restriction, the vast majority of adult fireworks and sparklers cannot be sold to anyone under the age of 18. Caps, cracker snaps, novelty matches, party poppers, serpents and throwdowns carry an age restriction of 16. ACS recommends that you adopt the ‘Challenge 25’ policy when selling fireworks. Full information about the ‘Challenge 25’ policy, valid forms of I.D and an I.D checklist can be found in the ‘Preventing Underage Sales’ here: http://www.acs.org.uk/advice/age-restrictions/.

Assured Advice has been developed for convenience store owners by ACS and Surrey County Council. By signing up to our Assured Advice scheme and following the guidance, your store procedures must be respected by ALL local enforcement officers including environmental health, police and trading standards – but you must sign up to the scheme to benefit from this privilege. Sign up to ACS Assured Advice for free here: http://www.acs.org.uk/assured-advice/.