Vancouver City Council has voted unanimously to ban the sale of gun-shaped lighters, in a move they say will free up police resources that are being used to respond to emergency calls related to the lighters being mistaken for real firearms.
The motion, put forward in June and made a bylaw on July 23, prohibits the sale of novelty gun-shaped lighters, and includes fines of up to $1,000 for infractions. The lighters are small handheld or torch lighters that have parts like a trigger, barrel or handle that make it resemble a real firearm.
Council sided with the Vancouver Police Department (VPD), who said significant police resources are being used to respond to related calls.
“Vancouver is taking the lead in protecting residents by restricting these dangerous lookalike items,” said Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim in a statement. He added that council will be inviting the province and federal government to introduce a broader ban “so that gun-shaped lighters do not continue to pose a risk.”
About 75 local retailers have been identified as selling gun-shaped lighters.
“Vancouver Police Department has already gone out to do education throughout all of these sites,” said Sarah Hicks, chief licence inspector for the City of Vancouver at the July 23 city council discussion. She added that retailers would receive written notice of the new bylaw and receive follow-up visits by police and bylaw officers to ensure compliance.
Vancouver plans to advocate the provincial and federal governments for a broader ban on the sale of the lighters, after VPD said they are becoming a significant issue in other municipalities such as Victoria.
According to VPD data, there has been a steady rise in incidents involving gun-shaped lighters, with police responding to 162 calls in 2024, of which 36 percent led to police using force.
“The bulk of our calls coming in are to 911. These are citizens calling in saying they’re seeing somebody out on the street, on a bus, in a restaurant, a Tim Hortons, something like that, with what they believe to be a firearm,” said VPD Superintendent Don Chapman at the July 23 city council meeting.
“Dispatch to that call will be multiple units and likely an armoured response team will be listening to that call and how it’s going... we have on average ten units going to each of these calls and most of those units [are] comprised of two officers. And these calls are lasting up to 2.5 hours per call,” Chapman added.
