Customs officials in the UK caught a sixty year old traveller returning from Lanzarote to Exeter last week with rather more than the permitted allowance of tobacco.

The normal amount of tax free cigarettes individuals are allowed to bring in to the UK is a carton of 200 cigarettes or 250 grams of loose tobacco. The man detained by Customs and Excise had packed his luggage and golf bag with 14,000 cigarettes or 70 cartons and was also carrying 23 kilos of tobacco.

The temptation to buy more than the duty free allowance to take back to the UK is a reflection of the huge price difference for tobacco products in the Canary Islands. Whilst a carton of 200 cigarettes can cost anywhere between €10 – €20 in Lanzarote, in the UK the cheapest brands of cigarettes still cost over £5 per pack of 20.

This substantial difference in duty has motivated many people to try and take more than the allowance permits back to Britain, with the obvious motive of selling them on the black market. And whilst individuals prepared to take the risk aren’t likely to make as much money as the lost tax revenue would have earned HM Customs, calculated in this instance at £5,500, the potential for a substantial profit margin still exists. The man stopped on 14th January was later released, but will be prosecuted if caught again.