Warning over outdoor smoking areas
Updated on 23 April 2007
Pubs, restaurants and companies could still be prosecuted if they provide an outdoor area for workers to smoke when the ban on smoking in public places comes into force in England in July, a law firm has warned.
Allen & Overy said employers could also have to pay for planning permission to alter outside areas to provide shelters for smokers.
Planning consent might even be required for small alterations such as providing bins for cigarette butts.
Simon Catterall of Allen & Overy said: "Property owners and occupiers potentially face a triple cost in trying to accommodate smokers - the cost of the permissions, which some may have overlooked for such basic things as bins for cigarette butts, the cost of building the space and then potentially the cost of a fine should the space not comply."
Pubs and restaurants providing an awning with temporary walls to protect smokers from the elements could be in breach of the ban as they will have created a new enclosed space to which the ban also applies.
Firms face a fine of up to £2,500 for breaching the ban.
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