Newsrack (Widnes) Limited (1) and Yasin Hafeji, of Albert Road, Widnes, were recently convicted in their absence at Warrington Magistrates Court for selling a vape to a 15-year-old from their shop Newsrack (2), also on Albert Road.
The seller, Yasin Hafeji, sold a grapefruit flavoured Elf Bar to a 15-year- old child volunteer who was working with Halton Borough Council Trading Standards and Cheshire Police as part of a test purchase operation, in October last year.
The company and the seller were prosecuted for the sale, they did not attend court and the case was heard in their absence. Each were ordered to pay £1,069.85 (fine £440, £176 victim surcharge and £453.85 legal costs).
Halton Trading Standards work with local retailers to ensure they understand the law around age-restricted products to reduce access among children. In this case, intelligence was received that children were able to purchase vapes from the premises. They were visited on two occasions by Trading Standards to provide advice and guidance on the law to try and ensure compliance. Yet the shop did not heed that advice. A targeted test purchase operation was carried out in October, and the 15-year-old child was able to purchase a vape, despite being under the legal age of 18.
A spokesperson for Halton Borough Council Trading Standards said: “We take the sale of all age-restricted products to young people in the borough seriously, and the rise in the number of young people vaping remains a significant concern.
“We continue to work with retailers to ensure they are aware of their legal obligations, while investigating complaints, including carrying out our work with test purchase volunteers to ensure that these products are kept out of the hands of our young people, to protect them from harming their health.
“We will take swift enforcement action against those retailers who continue to sell to under 18s. The sale of age-restricted products to young people under the age of 18 is a criminal offence.”
The most recent Trading Standards North West (TSNW) youth survey released in April surveyed almost 14,000 14-17 year olds in the region to evaluate changing attitudes and behaviours towards drinking, smoking, vaping, shisha and knives. The survey is carried out every two or three years in the North West and distributed through schools in the region. Notably, there has been an increase in the numbers of young people vaping, with 14% claiming to vape more than once a week, compared to 6% in 2020.
The Council’s portfolio holder for Consumer Protection and Trading Standards, Cllr Martha Lloyd Jones, says: “We have a duty to protect the residents of Halton and to try and prevent the access of age-restricted products such as vapes to our young residents.
“This case sends out a clear message that Trading Standards will take robust action where retailers break the law, and the sale of vapes to our young residents will not be tolerated. It should not be forgotten that as well as a financial penalty, this individual will have to deal with the stigma and impact of a criminal record for many years to come.”
The Council’s Director of Public Health, Dr Ifeoma Onyia, stressed that the negative impact vaping has on the health and wellbeing children and young people is of great concern.
She says: “Although we do know that vaping has been used successfully to help adults stop smoking, we still don’t fully understand all the long-term harms of vaping on young and developing lungs.
“It is about the balance of harms and, quite simply, smoking kills. The last thing we want to see is young people using vapes and perhaps progressing from this to smoking.
“The sale of underage vapes is a real concern. This activity needs to stop, so that our young people can grow up to live longer and healthier lives, protected from harm.”
If you have any information involving the sale of age restricted products to children within the Borough you can report it, anonymously if you wish, via the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 0808 223 1133. Local retailers who want further advice and assistance can visit https://www.businesscompanion.info for free, impartial legal advice for their business. Business Companion provides information for businesses and individuals that need to know about trading standards and consumer protection legislation.