How old do you to be to buy cigarettes online?
Cigarettes are normally not sold to people who are underage. This is done to protect the health of young people who may be affected by the dust and chemicals present in the cigarettes. But purchasing cigarettes online has become very common these days and there are hundreds or even millions of internet based cigarette stores that sell premium cigarette brands. There has been a tremendous increase in the number of people who buy cigarettes online, and this is because cigarettes are sold at a lower price, taxes are normally not applied, and attractive discounts are provided.
These features attract many smokers towards the internet. Easy access to cigarettes has a down side too; there is a good chance that online shopping may be misused by underage people to buy cigarettes online. So this article talks about how old do you to be to buy cigarettes online and what are the measures websites use to enforce this policy.
Experts are of the view that people who take up smoking at a young age tend to quickly develop dependence to nicotine and this effect starts right after the first puff. Governments of various countries have come with a minimum age for buying cigarettes from local stores. Similarly there is also a minimum age limit to purchase cigarettes from online retailers. This minimum age limit varies from 18 to 21 years depending on the policy agreement of the website from where you are purchasing the cigarettes. This minimum age limit is not only for buying cigarettes this also applies to sites which sell cigarettes; cigars; cigarette papers; pipe tobacco; chewing tobacco products like gutkah, betel quid, and paan; hand rolling tobacco; and products for a shisha pipe, also known as a hookah or water pipe.
According to some websites people who purchase cigarettes from their sites have to fax a copy of their driver’s license to show that they are old enough to buy cigarettes from the site. This is a security measure employed by certain sites to ascertain whether the buyer is eligible to buy cigarettes or not. Few other sites also ask the costumers for a signed copy of a debt authorization form.