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Shell Agrees To Curb Underage Tobacco Sales

47 Attorneys General forge new agreement to police gas stations

By Mark Huffman and Lisa Wade McCormick
ConsumerAffairs.com

October 9, 2008
Attorneys General from 46 states and the District of Columbia have entered into an agreement with Shell Oil Products US (Shell), and its parent company Motiva Enterprises LLC, over alleged illegal sales of tobacco products to minors.

Under the Assurance of Voluntary Compliance (AVC), Shell and Motiva must launch programs to prohibit the sale of tobacco products to minors at more than 2,000 gas stations.

Those stations have contracts with Shell, although the company does not own or operate any them. Shell, however, will incorporate the terms of this AVC into its contracts with the station owners. That will ensure the owners are held accountable for violating local, state or federal laws prohibiting the sale of tobacco to minors.

Shell and Motiva supply gasoline to approximately 14,000 gas stations in the United States and more than 13,000 of the stations are located in states joining the agreement.

"Today's agreement reflects our continuing efforts to protect young Texans by curbing tobacco sales to minors," said Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott. "As Attorney General, I am committed to a Texas that fosters healthy children. We will continue working with retailers, parents and others to improve future generations' health, safety and well-being."

"Nationwide, a large percentage of underage youths who reported buying cigarettes have said they did so at gas station convenience stores," said Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley. "We hope that today's agreement will prevent more kids from smoking, ensuring them a healthier future."

Under the agreement, Shell and Motiva have agreed to the following, among other terms:

• Provide comprehensive training to retail personnel regarding laws prohibiting tobacco sales to minors;

• Conduct independent compliance checks to monitor sales practices at certain convenience stores at Shell stations;

• Determine possible sanctions against contract operators that sell tobacco to minors, including refusing to renew agreements with contract operators who do not comply with youth access laws.

The agreement was the result of an ongoing, multi-state enforcement effort among the Attorneys General, and incorporates "best practices" in tobacco sales developed by the Attorneys General in consultation with public health researchers and state and federal tobacco control officials.

Authorities cited numerous statistics regarding the prevalence of illegal cigarette sales to minors when announcing the agreement. On average, one in every four attempts to buy cigarettes by a person 15-17 years old results in a sale, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

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