Over 400 illegal vapes seized on the Fylde Coast after test purchasing operation

A test purchasing operation was recently conducted by Wyre Police’s Licensing Team and Lancashire County Council Trading Standards Service.

Out of five stores that were tested for alcohol sales, one sold alcohol to an underage female and was issued with a penalty notice for disorder.

One premise also sold an illegal vape to the female. This premise was inspected and resulted in 425 non-compliant vapes being seized.

Inspector Martin Wyatt, of Fleetwood Police, said: “Selling alcohol and vapes to children is not only against the law but can put them at risk and lead to issues of anti-social behaviour.

“We have unfortunately seen cases where people have become very unwell, sometimes even hospitalised, due to the use of illegal vapes. We will continue to work with our partners to ensure they do not get into the hands of the public.

“We will continue to carry out similar operations and will take robust action against those who choose to sell these types of items to young people.”

Angela Lomax, a Trading Standards Manager at Lancashire County Council said: "Our team joined forces with the police on a shared test operation in Fleetwood, which resulted in more than 400 non-compliant vapes being seized.

“Preventing the sale of illicit goods keeps our residents, including teenagers and children, safe from underage sales and protects their health, which is very important to us.

Join our new WhatsApp Community to get the latest news and top stories from across Lancashire directly to your phone.

“Our Trading Standards team will continue to keep seizing illicit tobacco and non-compliant vapes and will take any necessary enforcement action against traders who continue to break the law.

“We always encourage anyone to report sellers that flout the law. Anyone who knows of retailers selling counterfeit goods, selling tobacco or e–cigarettes to young people under 18, or selling over-sized or counterfeit vapes, can refer these issues to Trading Standards via the Citizens Advice helpline on 0808 223 1133."