Store owners in London have reported being unable to purchase tobacco after their track-and-trace codes were rejected in cash and carries.

Two NFRN members said they had left Costco depots without their usual tobacco stock as their EOID and FID codes had been listed as “invalid” or “not connecting”, despite the codes working before and after in other cash and carries such as Bestway and Dhamecha.

Post Office retailer Murugesu Srikanthan visited his Wembley branch on 6 October. He said: “They said they needed an updated version of my codes, but they work elsewhere.”

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A Costco staff member at the Watford branch confirmed there had been “issues with the machine”, and advised shop owners to check their codes when they arrived, or to call beforehand to avoid being unable to purchase at the counter.

A Costco spokesperson said problems had been “few and far between” since track-and-trace system operator De La Rue introduced a “new function to be able to actually check EOID and FID codes” several weeks ago.

Retailers were advised to contact Costco or De La Rue for more information.

Over the summer, the grace period for incorrect EOID and FID codes came to an end, with stores told to check that their codes were still valid at eutpd.uk.delarue.com to make sure they remain able to purchase tobacco legitimately.

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