A reader writes:
I have been reading your comments on your website and I am surprised to see that there is nothing mentioned about the so-called fire safe cigarette. People in the United States are travelling inter-state to where you can still buy ‘normal cigarettes’ because of the horrible taste of these new fire-safe cigarettes.
I recently bought some in Majorca and I honestly thought they were not genuine Lambert & Butler Gold. Now I have bought some in the UK but they taste just as bad. Interestingly though there is no mention on the packet that they are fire-safe.
I have asked numerous smokers what they thought about their cigarettes and everyone I talk to (just members of the public, like me) say they taste awful.
Does anyone want to comment on this? Lower Ignition Propensity (LIP) cigarettes were introduced to Europe last month. They are designed, as we know, to increase the chances of cigarettes self-extinguishing when left alone. It is argued that this will help reduce the number of accidental fires allegedly caused by unattended burning cigarettes.
My understanding is that the taste and flavour of a LIP cigarette should not be affected. I have also read that "under normal smoking conditions, (LIP) cigarettes should not self-extinguish" unless they are "at rest".
Retailers will continue to sell non-LIP compliant cigarettes until stocks run out so if you don't know whether it's LIP or non-LIP compliant I suggest you ask the retailer at the point of sale.
Feedback welcome.