Council seizes £24,000 worth of illegal vapes

By Jacob Phillips, Local Democracy Reporter

A council has seized thousands of dodgy vapes as it fears they could be getting sold to kids.

Around 3,000 of the illegal vapes worth roughly £24,000 have been bagged in Kensington and Chelsea council raids.

The vapes are being sold throughout the borough, but most products have been seized from premises around Portobello Road and Earls Court.

Kensington and Chelsea council has now issued warnings to six traders and it has confiscated the counterfeit products.

Pictures of the confiscated vapes show a wide range of flavours being used to dupe Londoners into buying fake products.

Vapes flavoured like “strawberry ice cream”, “mixed berries”, and “peach mango guava” have all been seized by the council.

RBKC is worried the vapes’ branding is tricking children into buying illegal items.

RBKC suspects the products are being smuggled into the UK after high-strength vapes were banned in America.

Many of the products confiscated carry US health warnings rather than British warnings.

Councillor Josh Rendall, in charge of local economy and employment, said:  “These vapes are being designed and marketed to purposefully mislead people.

“They have no place in our borough. I am particularly worried about these products being sold to young people.

“Our trading standards team will continue to work hard to protect people from products that are non-compliant or misleading.”

Pictured top: Some of the seized vapes (Picture: Kensington and Chelsea council)