This followed the seizure of 170 vapes from Baweja & Brother Limited t/a Top Shop & Off Licence, St Leonards Road, Windsor on 31 July 2023, worth approximately £1500 in retail value. The shop is owned by Mr Tamanpreet Singh, aged 22, of Berkeley Waye, Hounslow.
Mr Singh pleaded guilty to two charges on behalf of himself and two charges on behalf of the company at Reading Magistrates’ Court on Friday 19 July 2024.
The charges related to product requirements and product labelling. The vaping products were illegal because they did not comply with product requirements in that they contained a bigger volume of nicotine-containing liquid than is permitted - the maximum permitted volume for disposable electronic cigarettes is two millilitres, these were 10 and 14 millilitres.
They were also not correctly labelled in that the health warning was smaller than required and therefore not sufficiently prominent.
These charges were brought against both the limited company and Mr Singh personally as he was directly responsible for the offences, and he had received advice and warnings from Trading Standards on multiple occasions.
Mr Singh must pay total fines of £984, a victim surcharge of £394 and the Royal Borough’s costs of £742. Baweja & Brother Limited must pay total fines of £1,332, a victim surcharge of £533 and the Royal Borough’s costs of £742. This is a total of £4,727 in fines and costs, and an order was made for the forfeiture and destruction of the vapes.
Councillor Richard Coe, cabinet member for Household & Regulatory Services, said: “I’d like to thank the Trading Standards team for their hard work securing this successful prosecution. Clamping down on illegal and dangerous vaping products is essential to protect residents from dangerous or toxic products."
“The Trading Standards team work also seeks to stop unfair trading practices from undermining other businesses which always follow the rules. This prosecution should be a warning to other shops in the area as to what will happen if they do not comply with the law.”
If you suspect a retailer is selling illegal vapes you can let the trading standards team know via email at Trading.Standards@RBWM.gov.uk.
If you’re a business selling vapes, please see further information available about the regulations.