On 6th January 2025, Mr Robert John Barker of Calderdale appeared at Kirklees Magistrates Court to answer charges relating to the sale of a disposable e-cigarette to a 13-year-old child at the premises at Gooder Lane Newsagents, 32 Gooder Lane, Brighouse.
It is an offence to sell electronic cigarettes containing nicotine to anyone under 18. The electronic cigarette itself was illegal, as it was oversized, containing more than the permitted 2ml of nicotine liquid.
Mr Barker pleaded guilty to offences under the Nicotine Inhaling Products (Age of Sale and Proxy Purchasing) Regulations 2015 and the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016. The Magistrates issued Mr Barker with a fine of £553. Mr Barker was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £221 and costs of £2257.53, totalling £3,031.23.
The case was launched after West Yorkshire Trading Standards Service received a complaint from a member of the public that the business was selling e-cigarettes (vapes) to children.
In May 2024, a 13-year-old volunteer entered the shop under the supervision of a Trading Standards Officer and asked to buy a vape. The seller sold a Crystal Pro-Max Fizzy Cherry 4000 disposable e-cigarette to the volunteer for £10 without asking for identification or challenging their age. It is an offence to sell electronic cigarettes containing nicotine to a person under the age of 18. It is also an offence to sell a disposable electronic cigarette with a tank capacity that exceeds 2 millilitres, or about 600 puffs.
The owner of the business Mr Barker was interviewed at a later date, and admitted to having a person they did not know serving in the shop and to buying the stock of over-sized e-cigarettes for sale to the public.
David Strover, Head of Trading Standards - Business Services said “the sale of disposable e-cigarettes to children should not be happening within our communities. The business was previously warned that complaints had been received and that a test purchase may follow. Vapes are for adult use to help smokers kick the habit and the sale of these products to children is unacceptable. The risk to juveniles of using vapes should not be underestimated, so retailers must ensure they implement rigorous systems to avoid the selling of vapes to minors, and staff must be trained accordingly. I would encourage everyone to report illegal sales, including partners and members of the public, to reduce the harm caused by vapes and tobacco in our communities.”
Councillor Ann Kingstone, Member of the West Yorkshire Joint Services Committee, which oversees the work of Trading Standards said “it is clearly irresponsible not to check the age of teenage customers wanting to purchase age restricted goods. Test purchases are undertaken regularly by Trading Standards staff to ensure shops adhere to the law on tobacco, e-cigarette and alcohol sales. The simple task of asking for identification and verifying the age of younger customers will help to reduce underage use.”
Consumers wishing to report illegal trading practices, including the sale of age restricted goods to children can call the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 0808 223 1133 to report their concerns - this can be done anonymously.