RESIDENTS are being urged to report any concerns about businesses selling illegal vapes after trading standards and other agencies raided two shops in Keynsham.
More than 1,000 illegal disposable vapes were seized from the premises, along with illegal tobacco.
The raids followed reports to Bath & North East Somerset Council that age-restricted products including vapes were being supplied to children and that illegal tobacco was being traded from the premises.
The sale of disposable vapes to young people has risen locally and nationally, with government statistics showing that 69% of current vapers aged 11 to 17 in Britain are using disposable vapes, up from 7.7% in 2021.
Illegal and oversized vapes are becoming an increasing problem and the council’s trading standards team has been carrying out regular checks on products for sale.
The Keynsham seizures resulted from an operation led by the council’s trading standards team and supported by Avon & Somerset Police, HMRC, Trading Standards South West and a dog handler with dogs trained to detect tobacco and vape.The council has been tackling the sale of illegal vapes after residents raised concerns, with illegal vapes having been found and seized at eight premises in the last few months.
The seizures were part of Operation Joseph, a national trading standards initiative to tackle the supply and sale of illegal vapes and e-cigarettes.
The council reminds traders that single-use vapes must be registered with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and have no more than 2ml of nicotine-containing liquid at a strength of no more than 2 mg/ml.
Additionally, illegal vapes are unlikely to have undergone any assessments to ensure they are safe for consumers to use.
The drug advice service FRANK (www.talktofrank.com) provides information aimed at young people about vapes and nicotine.
If a member of the public has any concern about a business, or believe they have seen illegal or counterfeit products for sale, they should report it to Citizens Advice Consumer Service through their web portal, or by phoning 0808 223 1133. All reports are passed to trading standards.
Pictured, detection dogs with seizures in Keynsham as part of Operation Joseph
Illegal vapes seized from two Keynsham shops
