If you sell fireworks you have certain obligations to the public and your staff, including the following:
The storage requirements include the following:
In almost all cases, yes. There are certain amounts where a licence may not be required. You will need to apply to our trading standards team for the licence.
Yes for category F2 & F3 (specific sales period) and for storing over 5kg of category F1 for retail sales.
No, the premises that holds the licence is the only place from which you may sell and where the fireworks must be stored; - the approved storage arrangements are agreed prior to the issuing of a licence and must be strictly adhered to. Any change to the approved arrangements would be a variation of licence which would incur a charge of £35.
The periods where selling fireworks without a sales licence are:
An additional licence is required if you wish to sell outside of these periods (all year round), an application form can be obtained from our trading standards team.
Yes. There are four categories of fireworks. The Pyrotechnic Articles (Safety) Regulations 2015 specify those which may be supplied to the general public. Only category F1, F2 and F3 may be sold to the public
There are exceptions that cannot be sold to the general public; Category F4 are for professional use only and can only be sold to persons with specialist knowledge; person’s that can demonstrate that they have full insurance, proper licensed storage and competence.
Fireworks should be sold in manufacturers’ packed sets. The contents of these must not be taken out of their packs and sold separately. Some larger individual devices may be sold unpacked. Fireworks should be the last purchase before the customer leaves your premises, under no circumstances should you allow a customer to carry fireworks around the premises.
You can find a leaflet giving information about storing and selling fireworks safely on the Health and Safety Executive website.
Here are some of the key points:
Please note you must take special precautions if you share a building with flats or maisonettes.
Please contact your local fire service for more information.
You must carry out a Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations fire risk assessment. You can find a risk assessment checklist on the Health and Safety Executive website. This should be made available to any inspecting officer on request. Ideally your licence should be on display at all times or to hand in the sales area along with your approved arrangements for storage and a current Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations risk assessment.
Your firework supplier is also a useful source of information and advice. The approved storage arrangements for fireworks will have been agreed by the explosives officer. This must NOT be changed without informing our trading standards team.
Before you can supply or transfer more than 50kg net explosive content of fireworks to someone, that person must show you a valid licence or give a legitimate reason for not requiring a licence. The retailer must record any transaction of more than 50kg. Proof of identification, full contact details etc. will be required.
Your premises should already meet various fire regulations so what follows is extra advice for the period while you are selling fireworks and is not a complete statement of your obligations.
This advice includes:
As a responsible retailer, you should display safety leaflets featuring the firework code – available from trading standards departments and manufacturers free of charge – alongside the fireworks, ensuring your customers get essential safety advice.
Watch the age limit for buying fireworks. Don’t sell to anyone under 18 - anti-social behaviour with fireworks can be a problem.
These Regulations, made under the Fireworks Act 2003, form a comprehensive package of measures designed principally to tackle the anti–social and criminal use of fireworks via the regulation of supply and use.
The Regulations include:
Making permanent the Fireworks Regulations 2003, which made it an offence for the under 18s to possess category F2 & F3 fireworks in public places and an offence for anyone (other than a fireworks professional) to possess Category F4 (professional display) fireworks;
A requirement that all suppliers of fireworks will be required to obtain a licence to supply fireworks, from your local authority; this has the effect of restricting sales to within certain defined periods.
The periods where selling without an all-year sales licence are:
The creation of a curfew on fireworks use between 11pm and 7am (in line with the Noise Act), with the exception of the following nights where the curfew will vary:
There is a requirement that importer’s supply information at the point of entry (the ports), to help ensure that the fireworks are destined for legitimate storage and distribution. This information will be passed on to the relevant authority responsible for storage licences to enable checks on deliveries to be carried out. The imposition of a maximum noise limit on category F2 and F3 fireworks, 120 decibels (in line with the harmonised European Standard – EN 15947).
Age of purchase:
The following fireworks must not be supplied to the general public, except for persons with specialist knowledge:
The following categories F2 and F3 fireworks must not be supplied to members of the public:
Other measures include:
Failure to comply with these requirements can result in prosecution and an unlimited fine or a prison sentence of up to three months, or both.
These Regulations, made under the Consumer Protection Act 1987, amend the Fireworks (Safety) Regulations 1997 to include:
It is an offence to throw or discharge a firework in a street or public place.
Failure to comply with these requirements can result in prosecution and an unlimited fine.