Sheffield’s Trading Standards team have warned traders against selling illicit vape and tobacco products across the city.
The warning comes as one trader, Barzen Mahmood-Poor, has been ordered to pay back £21,285, which he has been ruled to have made from the sale of illegal vapes at his shop, Manor Mini Market, on City Road.
Last August, Mr Mahmood-Poor received a six-month suspended prison sentence and community punishment order after he pleaded guilty to 10 offences that breached the act.
He had been selling products in non-compliant packaging, as well as some which contained more vape liquid than the prescribed 2ml limit.
South Yorkshire Police had found more than 1000 packets of illegal cigarettes, as well as over 130 illegal vapes in a raid of the shop after the Trading Standards team were able to regularly buy these products from the shop between September 2023 and March 2024.
Joe Otten, the Chair of the Waste and Street Scene Committee, said that the Trading Standards team is working “hard” to protect “the public, including children, from the harm of illegal vapes and tobacco.”
He added: “Traders who continually break the law and cause harm will be made accountable for their crimes.
“Illegal traders absolutely need to recognise the harm they cause. Those who buy from them are also contributing to the harm that can be caused by illegal products that are incorrectly labelled, and which contain harmful substances and excessively high illegal levels of nicotine.
“We continue our commitment to protecting the next generation from tobacco harm and those who target them with vapes.”
The Trading Standards team have also advised traders to comply with the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which came into force last June and significantly reduces the types of nicotine products that can be sold.
Under this bill, single-use vapes have been banned, whilst all products must be sold in packaging that highlights relevant health warnings. They must also only be brought from legitimate sources.
If members of the public are aware of a shop selling illegal products, they can report this online here or call 0808 223 1133.