The fact that smoking is harmful to our health is no secret, but what many people don't realise is that second-hand smoke can also be very dangerous. According to Professor Kevin Fenton, National Director for Health and Wellbeing for Public Health England, approximately 80% of second-hand smoke is completely invisible and odourless. The NHS agrees that this smoke is particularly harmful to kids as they breathe more rapidly due to having less developed airways. That's why on 11 February 2015, legislation was introduced to ban people from smoking in cars with children under 18.
This change in legislation could also mean that smoking will soon be banned in homes with children under 18 years of age. According to a study conducted by leading online estate agent eMoov, 68% of those surveyed thought that smoking should be banned in homes where infants are present and 71% of females were more in favour of this ban than males (63%). A lot of young people felt very strongly about the issues as well - 75% of those surveyed were 16-24 year olds who supported the ban.
The study also revealed how different areas of the country felt about a smoking ban at home when there are kids present. It turned out that with 78% are in favour of the ban and Sheffield was the area where people felt the strongest about the issue.
It's possible that this might have an impact on the British rental market. It's very difficult for landlords to enforce a no smoking rule but legislation could make it possible considering that smoking tenants with kids would be committing a criminal offence. It's not only the children's health that would be protected; landlords would also benefit from it as this ban would prevent smoke smell and damage, which could make the property less appealing to future tenants.
According to eMoov's survey, almost half of the people questioned stated that they'd be put off by a house or flat if the previous tenant had been smoking in it. This could potentially even reduce the resale value and eMoov's data seems to support this concern as 49% of those surveyed wouldn't like to buy a property that smells of smoke - especially women (52%) and young people between 16 and 24 (59%) who stated that they would be put off by the smell when looking to buy a property.
The latest changes to smoking bans in the UK are being used to educate parents about the dangers of smoking in the car and at home when there are kids around. In a survey, the majority of people agreed that smoking should be banned in homes with infants. It also turned out that a significant number of people would not buy or rent a property if the previous owners or tenants were smokers. Landlords might be able to benefit from the latest developments as it'd mean that they'd have more power to enforce the no smoking rule in their rented out property.
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