Illegal vape sales to underage teens in Northern Ireland double over last year, figures show

Reports of illegal vape sales to underage teens have doubled in Northern Ireland over the last year, new figures reveal.

A report of underage vape sales was made every three days to Northern Irish local authorities, resulting in a 55% increase in fines issued to businesses caught selling vaping products to underage people compared to the previous year.

Northern Ireland and Scotland can issue on-the-spot fines for perpetrators, unlike Wales and England. While this is a positive increase, it seems penalty rates aren't increasing in line with offences.

READ MORE: Warning as weed killer and ketamine in vapes supplied to NI kids

READ MORE: Figures on number of illegal vapes confiscated in Belfast in one year

Local councils here issued a total of £14,125 worth of fines to those caught selling vapes to children last year. But individual fines were significantly lower than the maximum penalty of £2,500 for each offence.

The data comes from The 2024 Underage Vape Sales Report which analysed Freedom of Information requests from 138 local authorities across the UK, obtained by Vape Club. The report calls for the government to introduce a Vape Retailer and Distributor Licensing framework to curb the vaping black market and prevent sales to children.

In Northern Ireland, there has been a 65% increase since 2022 in confirmed cases of businesses unlawfully selling vaping products to underage persons with 61 perpetrators being caught in 2023.

Compared to 2022, there's been a 67% increase in NI in the number of warnings issued per confirmed case in 2023. And compared to the previous year, there’s been a 55% increase in fines issued to businesses caught selling vaping products to underage people.

Across the UK, Liverpool City Council has caught 54 businesses selling vapes to underage persons in the latest year — the highest in the UK. This was followed by Belfast City Council with 46 and South Lanarkshire, with 35. Belfast fined all 77 perpetrators caught selling vapes to underaged people since the turn of the decade.

NI authorities with the most reports of underage vape sales:

Across the UK, over 4,500 reports of underage vape sales were made in the latest year, equivalent to one every two hours — an increase of 31% compared to the previous year.

Vape industry leaders have emphasised the need for stricter penalties as a deterrent. Dan Marchant, Director of the UK’s largest vaping and vape pod retailer, Vape Club, said: “The government needs to support local councils in enforcing stricter penalties. While some progress is being made, it’s clear that there’s still plenty more that can be done to tackle the issue of underage vape sales in Northern Ireland.

“A licensing framework could provide £50 million annually to Trading Standards without burdening taxpayers, allowing for stricter enforcement and higher fines, which are necessary as rogue retailers currently face little risk of being caught.

“Currently, the maximum fine for violations is £2,500, but fines are often much lower. We'd like to see fines raised to at least £10,000, with higher penalties for repeat offenders.”

The Department of Health has been approached for comment.

For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.

Story Saved

You can find this story in  My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.