Gloucester shop owner prosecuted over illegal vapes Gloucestershire Trading Standards
Summary
A shop owner has been ordered to pay over £5,000 for selling illegal disposable vapes following an investigation by Gloucestershire County Council‘s Trading Standards service. Jamal Safarkhani , 47 and from Park End Road, Gloucester, pleaded guilty to selling illegal disposable vapes from One Stop Shop in Southgate Street at a trial at Cheltenham Magistrates’ Court on August 3.
Details
Mr Safarkhani, who owned the store, was found guilty of four offences relating to the possession, sale and supply of electronic cigarettes containing nicotine liquid in excess of the legal limit. He was sentenced to pay £307 for each of the four charges, as well as paying costs of £3,693 and a victim surcharge of £491, with the total fine being £5,412.
The charges relate to a Trading Standards investigation between May and November 2024. On May 30, 2024, a Trading Standards officer bought a Hayati Pro Ultra 15,000+ puff vape from the shop. Packaging on the product stated that it contained two 12ml oil tanks.
Disposable electronic cigarettes are limited to no more than 2ml of nicotine-containing liquid, under the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016. The regulations are intended to set minimum safety and quality standards and to help protect consumers, including children and young people. Non-compliant vapes can contain significantly more nicotine-containing liquid than permitted.
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Oversized tanks and high puff counts may make it harder for consumers to understand how much nicotine they are using. Officers inspected the premises on June 6, 2024, and seized 103 illegal electronic cigarettes. Further inspections on October 2 and November 1, 2024, led to the seizure of 41 and 120 illegal electronic cigarettes respectively.
In total, 264 illegal electronic cigarettes were seized from the premises, in addition to the vape purchased during the test purchase. Cllr Paul Hodgkinson, cabinet member responsible for Trading Standards at Gloucestershire County Council , said: “Illegal vapes are not a harmless breach of the rules.
The legal limits exist to protect consumers and to help prevent products with excessive nicotine-containing liquid being sold in our communities. “This is in line with the government’s prevention message of breaking people’s addiction to nicotine-containing products. Our Trading Standards officers will continue to take action where businesses ignore those requirements.”
Report source: Punchline Gloucester