A Buxton business has been fined a total of £6,000 and ordered to pay £5,000 in costs after admitting charges of selling a knife and a vape to an underaged person, and the possession for illegal vapes.
The successful prosecution was brought by Derbyshire County Council’s Trading Standards.
Test purchase exercises carried out by officers at Buxton Bargains, on 34 Spring Gardens, Buxton, saw the store selling a set of three kitchen knives and a disposable vape to a volunteer who was under 18 years of age on separate occasions in May and June last year. No age or ID checks were carried out at time of the sales.
Further visits to the business led to the discovery of non-compliant vapes at the shop. This was despite comprehensive advice and guidance from trading standards officers being provided to the business on underage sales and supply of vapes, the court heard.
Maryam Rahman, company director of Buxton Mega Pound Store Limited, trading as Buxton Bargains, appeared before Southern Derbyshire Magistrates on 17 May for sentencing after entering guilty pleas to the charges.
In passing sentence, Judge Flint said that vapes were “all the rage at the moment” with lots of shops selling them in different colours and flavours, but it was forgotten or ignored that vapes were tightly regulated products due to containing nicotine, and the regulations made sure that retailers only sell vapes which are legal.
“It seems that your shop sold vapes without any regard to the regulations,” he said.
He added that the problem with selling one without following the regulations is that it creates a danger to the public, and that the shop had a number of problems, having sold vapes to under 18s without its original packaging and with too much nicotine in the tank, along with the “plainly serious offence” of selling a knife to an under 18.
Commenting, Cllr Carol Hart, cabinet member for health and communities at Derbyshire County Council, said: “The law is clear. Knives and vapes must not be sold to people under 18 years. Retailers must check photo ID for proof of age of any customer of age-restricted products who appears to be underage.
“The sentence handed down by the court, following this successful prosecution brought by our Trading Standards team, should be a deterrent and warning to suppliers of age-restricted items like knives, vapes and tobacco. We must do all we can to keep people safe.”
