UK: 83 % of smoking drivers admit to smoking in cars around children

A study by Direct Line Motor Insurance[1] reveals that eight out of 10 drivers smoke ten admit to smoking in their car in the presence of children, despite the illegality of the practice and the danger it poses to children's health.

The study published on June 5, 2023 reveals that 83% of drivers who smoke do so with children in the car, and almost a quarter (24%) do not know that they are breaking the law. At the same time, only 17% of the motorists surveyed are aware of the penalties incurred in the event of reckless driving due to smoking or vaping.

Since 2015, it has been illegal in the UK to smoke in a vehicle in the presence of people under the age of 18. If drivers and smokers are caught, they risk a fine of £50 (around €58). In the most serious cases, they risk an unlimited fine, up to nine penalty points or a driving ban.

Overall, almost a quarter (23%) of drivers smoke in the car and a similar proportion (24%) use e-cigarettes. Of these, 81 % admit to doing so when driving with children. While vaping is currently legal, there is widespread popular support for banning it. Three quarters (73%) of drivers say they support making vaping in the car illegal around children, just like smoking cigarettes[2].

Children, a particularly sensitive target for passive smoking

Passive smoking is particularly harmful to children and young people, whose airways, lungs and immune systems are immature. A 2021 study from the University of Cincinnati found that children exposed to tobacco smoke are more often admitted to emergency rooms and hospitalized than unexposed children, with an increased risk of respiratory infections, ear infections and asthma.

WHO estimates that smoking in cars exposes children to pollution levels 35 times higher than those deemed safe by the organization, affecting their growing airways, lungs and immune systems.[3]A study published in Tobacco Control in 2009 found that recorded nicotine levels double in a vehicle after every cigarette smoked.[4]. With the windows closed, the carbon monoxide concentration in a car is two to three times higher than on a busy road during rush hour.

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[1] Kids strapped in for second hand smoke, The Hippocratic Post, June 13, 2023, accessed June 16, 2023.

[2] Over 70% of motorists want vaping banned in cars, Fleetworld, August 14, 2019, accessed June 16, 2023.

[3] Tobacco control to improve child health and development: thematic brief, World Health Organization, March 16, 2021, accessed June 19, 2023

[4] Secondhand tobacco smoke concentrations in motor vehicles: a pilot study , Tobacco Control, 2009, accessed June 19, 2023