Vaping News, Safety & Regulations
The Crackdown continues on Counterfeit Disposables
Picture credit: Westminster Trading Standards
The Crackdown continues on Counterfeit Disposable Vapes
Disposable Vapes are ever increasing in popularity with more and more hitting the shelves in different retail outlets across the country. Unfortunately, the number of counterfeit disposable vapes entering the market is increasing and being sold to unknown consumers.
Trading Standards have their work cut out for them on cracking down on these being sold but continue to work relentlessly around the country by carrying out raids on shops and seizing thousands of counterfeit products every week.
I’ve previously written an article on the beginnings of these crackdowns and this article will be an update on how Trading Standards are cracking down across the country.
What are Trading Standard Doing
Recently, the Trading Standards team of Westminster City Council swooped in on multiple shops located on Oxford Street in London and carried out a number of successful raids. Reports say that Trading Standards officers walked away from Oxford Street with 43 large sacks filled to the brim of counterfeit products, with over £100,000 worth of counterfeit disposable vapes being amongst the seized goods!
Raj Mistry, Executive Director of Environment & City Management at Westminster City Council, said:
“We are putting these questionable traders on notice that they will not be tolerated in our city. We’ll continue to take action against such unsafe trading activities in order to keep our residents and visitors safe. We will not allow those selling illegal or counterfeit goods in Westminster to keep up such unsafe practices. Sooner or later we will identify such illegal trading and we will seek prosecutions and the maximum fines.”
This is fantastic to see that trading standards team are cracking down hard on these traders operating illegally, and getting these counterfeit vapes off the shelves. Not only did this happen in London, but also in Gloucestershire. Trading Standards were notified by parents, schools, and members of the general public that multiple stores across the county were not only openly selling counterfeit products but selling them to underage users!
Gloucestershire Trading Standards carried out test purchases using underage volunteers in 29 different stores and found that 6 of the 29 stores were more than happy to break the law and supply underage customers with tobacco related products, shocking. To find out more about how old you have to be to vape, click here!
Letters were sent to these traders stating what they had done, and the Cabinet Member for trading standards warned that further negligence of the law will result in court action being taken and the offenders prosecuted.
What are counterfeit disposable vapes doing to the vape market?
The continuation in sales of these counterfeit disposables and selling to underage users is hurting the reputation of the vaping industry that has taken a long time to get into good light after all of the negative media previously published against vaping.
Counterfeit disposable vapes are dangerous products as they have not had to adhere to the safety regulations imposed by the TPD legislations that came into effect in 2016 to keep the public safe with the tobacco products they use.
Some counterfeit disposables are being flaunted with 50mg nicotine content, as well as 4.5ml vape juice capacity. These are the two biggest red flag indicators that the vape you may be purchasing is counterfeit and illegal to be sold within the UK. If you happen across a store selling these, I recommend contacting your local Trading Standards authority to report them, and help in the fight against counterfeit disposable vapes being openly sold on the UK Market.
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