New, and loaded!
Scotty,
The lighter was new and had been filled, but according to the literature I've seen, is not a prohibited article because the liquid fuel used is absorbed in cotton wadding, and is unpressurised, so therefore is less likely to constitute a hazard than the ubiquitous gas lighter. It hasn't caused even a second glance at any airport security, apart from this one occasion, although I admit that I didn't have much cause to test the theory during the period when the restrictions were at their most stringent.
It may well be that it should be picked up by security at the screening point - maybe the fact that it's usually in the tray or in a jacket pocket going through the X-ray machine has something to do with it. As I said already, on the occasion described I had forgotten to put it into either, having completely missed it when I was emptying my trouser-pockets. The point that I was making however, was about the magpie-like manner of the agent!