Solihull shop fined over £11,000 for selling illegal vapes

A shop in Olton has been fined over £11,000 after the business and its director were found guilty of selling illegal disposable vapes.

Abdul Qadar, aged 32 of Edgbaston Road, Birmingham, and his business – Vapourmist Ltd at 43 Warwick Road, Olton, Solihull – were found guilty of selling illegal disposable vapes. They were fined £9,000 which was reduced to £6,000 for an early guilty plea, plus £2,700 costs and £2,400 victim surcharge (total £11,100) at Birmingham Magistrates Court on 9 January.

Qadar was also given a conditional discharge for 12 months and ordered to pay £26 victim surcharge in 14 days.

The prosecution followed an inspection carried out by staff at Solihull Council’s Trading Standards team a year ago on 26 January 2024. The team seized 472 disposable vapes which were in excess of the legal tank size limit. 65 of the vapes were also shown to contain nicotine despite the product packaging stating clearly that ‘This product does not contain any nicotine’.

“Selling illegal vapes at low prices can make the products attractive to children and encourage vaping at an early age. Not only that but many of the seized vapes contained illegal amounts of nicotine,” Cllr Wazma Qais, Solihull Council’s cabinet member for communities, said.

“Businesses that ignore the law and sell these illegal products face prosecution, fines and even imprisonment.

“I would like to thank the Council’s Trading Standards team for their continued work to ensure businesses operating in Solihull comply with their legal obligations, and for following up this complaint successfully. The resident’s complaint and the team’s actions have ensured that these harmful products will not be sold.”