The enforcement team in the London borough of Hammersmith & Fulham (H&F) has confiscated 12,263 illicit vapes with a total value of £106,236 since April 2021. Nearly £24,000 of this total has been seized in the last seven months alone, highlighting an ongoing crackdown on non-compliant products.
“It’s up to shopkeepers to comply with the law,” warned Doug Love from H&F Trading Standards. “The message is clear – we’re watching. We monitor shops, and we will remove illegal goods.” This action comes as some retailers have been slow to adapt to the UK’s disposable vape ban, which took effect on June 1st. Repeat offenses for selling banned disposables can lead to unlimited fines and up to a two-year prison term.
These local efforts are part of a larger national strategy. A series of raids, codenamed Operation Machinize 2, has targeted 2,700 shops across the country in the past six months, resulting in 924 arrests and the seizure of £10.7 million worth of illegal goods, including vapes and tobacco. Rachael Herbert of the National Crime Agency emphasized that depriving criminals of income limits their ability to reinvest in further offending and deters them from occupying high street spaces meant for legitimate businesses.
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