Germany wants to ban smoking in cars. Fines up to €3,000

North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony have announced that on September 26, 2025, they will submit a bill to the German Bundesrat that would permanently end tobacco smoke in cars occupied by children and pregnant women. The German Cancer Research Center is sounding the alarm: nearly one million children in Germany are regularly exposed to secondhand smoke in cars. Cigarettes smoked in a closed car can have serious consequences, including lung damage, an increased risk of cancer, and impaired growth. North Rhine-Westphalia's Health Minister, Karl-Josef Laumann, is blunt: "This is irresponsible! Children and unborn life cannot protect themselves from the effects of smoke."

Punishment as for a serious offense

The new regulations are intended to serve as a warning to smokers who ignore the well-being of children. They're facing hefty fines ranging from €500 to as much as €3,000. Politicians emphasize that the penalties must be severe enough to avoid being treated as a "symbolic reprimand." In practice, this means that smoking in a car in the presence of a child could cost a driver the equivalent of a good month's salary in Germany. A smoking ban in cars is not a new idea. Several federal states submitted similar proposals in 2019. In 2022, the Bundesrat even voted to forward the proposal to the Bundestag, and in 2023, the Ministry of Health presented its own proposal. Each time, the matter has been marred by political disputes and a lack of will to implement real change. Now, however, given public pressure and alarming medical data, the chances of passing the ban are much greater.

Europe Says No to Car Smoke

Germany is no pioneer in this area. Many European countries already have a ban on smoking in cars in the presence of children. In France, the fine is €135, in Austria, repeat offenders can pay up to €1,000, and in Greece, the fine can reach €1,500. Italians impose fines ranging from €50 to €500, and in extreme cases, even €5,000. Spain goes even further: it plans a complete ban on smoking in cars, regardless of the presence of children. If the German Bundesrat adopts the bill in September, the Bundestag will take up the matter. Only there will the final political battle take place. One thing is certain: the issue will not disappear. In the background, we have the health of children and the social pressure that politicians cannot ignore.

Did you know that… - According to the WHO, passive smoking causes over 1.3 million deaths worldwide each year – including in people who have never smoked themselves. - In a closed car, the concentration of toxins from a cigarette can be up to 10 times higher than in a pub full of smoke.

- In Australia, the ban on smoking in cars in the presence of children has been in force since 2009 and is strictly enforced by the police.