Two shops fined in South West for selling illegal vapes
They both pleaded guilty and were fined over £1000
Businesses in the West Country are being warned they could face court proceedings if the vapes they sell are illegal.
It comes following two investigations by Bath & North East Somerset Council - in which the owners of the Spar shop in Weston and Kaay Stores in Westfield were found to be selling illegal products.
On October 23rd, 2024 at Bath Magistrates Court, Darshan Balendran, owner of the Spar shop, was found to have more than 100 illegal vapes for sale when officers from the council’s Trading Standards team visited on May 1 this year.
Balendran entered a guilty plea for one count under The Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016. He was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £400 and costs of £1,059.
Also on October 23rd at Bath Magistrates Court, Thuraisingam Yogamoorthy, owner of Kaay Stores in Westfield, also pled guilty to a single offence under The Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 after officers found 39 illegal vapes at the shop during a visit on May 16. Yogamoorthy also entered a guilty plea for an offence brought against the company under the same regulations.
Yogamoorthy was fined £1,000, and the company Aathenaa Ltd was fined £1,500 for the offence. Costs and surcharges were ordered totalling £2,300.
To be legally sold in the UK, disposable vapes are required to have undergone a safety assessment and authorisation process with the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.
Councillor Tim Ball, cabinet member for Neighbourhood Services said: “Our trading standards team will continue to work hard to stop illegal vapes being made available to the public. We will continue to make checks on retailers that sell vapes and protect consumers from the harm that can be caused by illegal products.”