Over 27,000 illegal vapes have been seized from a Sheffield warehouse by the city council’s Trading Standards team.

The council revealed that Trading Standards’ officers seized the illegal devices in a citywide crackdown on the supply of illegal tobacco and vapes. The team has the responsibility to enforce laws on the distribution of these goods. 

Chair of the Waste and Street Scene Policy Committee, Councillor Joe Otten, said: “It’s so important for our Trading Standards team to investigate and take swift action on this issue.

“It is totally unacceptable that vapes are being designed and promoted to appeal to children and young people, and it’s particularly concerning that many of the vapes seized were unregulated and contained excessively high illegal levels of nicotine.”

So far this year, they have seized more than 11,941 illegal vapes from city retailers with three businesses fined for selling vapes to children. This resulted in fines of £880 to two businesses and £440 to an individual. 

To be legally sold in the UK, businesses must ensure that vapes contain 20ml or less of nicotine; do not have a capacity of more than 2ml in a single use cartridge; carry the health warning ‘This product contains nicotine which is a highly addictive substance’; and be notified to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

The Trading Standards team advises vape businesses to act responsibly when selling vape products, recommending them to buy from legitimate sources and make sure the products they sell have the correct labelling. 

This comes in the shadow of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill currently being passed through parliament, which will make the sale and distribution of single-use and disposable vapes illegal. 

Coming into effect on June 1, 2025, the ban is set to reduce the appeal of vaping to children, while protecting the environment. 

Greg Fell, Director of Public Health for Sheffield, said: “Delivering this vital enforcement action through our Trading Standards team is essential and we look forward to tougher national regulation to complement this work.”