An operation run by Trading Standards has found that 13% of vapes marketed as being nicotine free contain nicotine, sometimes in excess of the legal limits.
Trading Standards officers from the organisation’s south-west services, together with its Salford and Berkshire outposts, purchased 76 supposedly nicotine-free vapes from a variety of retailers before testing them to see if they contained the drug.
Officials found that more than 10 of these products contained nicotine, equivalent to one in eight (13.2%.) devices.
The initiative, funded by the Department of Health and Social Care, also found the mislabelled vapes contained between 0.06 mg/ml (milligram per millilitre) and 27.02 mg/ml, the higher figure being equivalent to a pack of 20 cigarettes, and well in excess of the 20mg/ml legal limit.
All 10 of the vapes in question contained more than the 2ml of vape liquid limit permitted by legislation, while two exceeded the 20mg/ml nicotine cap.
Lord Michael Bichard, chair of National Trading Standards, warned that businesses “should be aware vapes falsely claiming to be nicotine free are in circulation and should make sure they are not breaking the law by selling products that are falsely advertised, especially where they are importing goods or acting as the main UK distributor.”
Trading Standards’ survey comes just three months ahead of the ban on single-use vapes, with the Association of Convenience Stores separately warning retailers that the new rules represent “one of the biggest regulatory changes for retailers in recent memory”. The ACS has urged businesses to “think carefully about how they manage their range of vaping products in the coming months to ensure that they’re ready for June 1”.
Retailers in England found to be in breach of the ban face fines of £200 for their first offence, as well as a stop notice and compliance notice. Repeat offenders can be issued an unlimited fine, together with a prison sentence of up to two years. Welsh retailers face similar penalties, as well as a possible Magistrates’ trial, while Northern Irish operators can be taken to a Magistrate’s Court and receive a fine of up to £5,000, with repeat offences potentially receiving a two-year sentence.
Scottish vendors will be offered a £200 fixed penalty notice (FPN), reduced to £150 if paid within 14 days – though retailers who are caught twice within three years can be fined up to £800. If a Scottish retailer caught selling disposable vapes after June 1 declines an FPN, or “an enforcement officer does not consider it appropriate to issue a fixed penalty notice”, they can be taken to court and, if found guilty, fined up to £5,000, while also potentially facing a custodial sentence of up to two years.
