What crippling limitations will the TPD bring to Vaping?

What crippling limitations will the new EU Regulations (TPD) bring to Vaping?

Vaping is a habit that has taken the UK by storm, with an estimated 2.6 million adults in Britain currently using E-Cigarettes on a regular basis in an attempt to cut down or quit smoking regular cigarettes. This figure still continues to skyrocket, however may soon hit a stand-still with the Tobacco Products Directive (Article 20) coming into force on May 20th 2016. The more E-Cigarettes gain attention and popularity, the more there are cries for them to be regulated; fears of children becoming involved in vaping is one of the main reasons given for wanting to clamp down on it.

When these new laws come into place, E-Cigarettes will be categorised as a Tobacco related product, meaning there are multiple rules/guidelines that need to be strictly followed:

-The size of E-Liquid bottles will be reduced

Currently you can purchase bottles of E-Liquid in a whole range of sizes; 10ml, 30ml, 50ml and sometimes even 100ml are common E-Liquid bottle sizes. This will now be limited so the maximum capacity for any E-Liquid container you can buy will be 10ml. A reason for this cut is rumoured to be an attempt to lessen the risk of poisoning through direct consumption of the E-Liquid.

-Tanks and cartridges will be made smaller

You will no longer be able to buy a tank or cartridge with a capacity any larger that 2ml. This means refilling liquid will become a much more regular occurrence for a lot of vapers. To put this into perspective, here’s a selection of the tanks we sell and their capacities:

Kanger Subtank Mini – 4.5ml

HorizonTech Arctic Tank – 3ml

Aspire Atlantis 2 Tank – 3ml

Eleaf Melo 2 Tank – 4.5ml

Uwell Crown Tank – 4ml

Kanger T3D Tank – 2.2ml

Aspire Triton 2 Tank – 3ml

Aspire ET-S Clearomisers – 2.5ml – 3ml

Aspire Nautilus Mini Tank – 2ml

Aspire Nautilus Tank – 5ml

Innokin iSub Apex Tank – 3ml

Kanger EVOD Mega Tank – 2.5ml

Innokin iClear 30B Tank – 3ml

-Nicotine levels will be capped

20mg will be the maximum nicotine level for all E-Liquids. This means the heavier smokers switching to vaping could end up missing out on the the nicotine that they need.

-Child proof measures to be put in place

The fear of minors becoming involved with vaping has influenced the decision to make all E-Cigarette packaging child proof.

-Product details to be continually sent to the government

Manufacturers will be required to send extensive information about all the products they produce and sell.

-Potential ban after three strikes?

If at least three EU members decide (with relevant and appropriate reasoning) they want E-Cigarettes to be banned permanently, this has to be taken into account and a process to ban them can be initiated.

So there are the main limitations that will be placed on vaping with the new regulations set to come into place. Will this be the end of vaping as we know it?