Units of e-cigarettes, vaping devices, e-liquid goods and cigarette packs were seized - Find a freedom of information request

I would like to receive information on the following questions for your local authority area, spanning the past five years in total up to the latest available data.

1. How many units of e-cigarettes/vaping devices/e-liquid goods were seized?

2. How many units of cigarette packs were seized?

3. The number of identified cases of illegal vaping products being in possession of, stocked, or sold by businesses

4. How many fines or penalties have been issued for being in possession of, stocking, or selling illegal vapes?

5. What was the value in £ pound sterling of each fine issued by your local authority?

Please present this data annually for each of the below periods:

1st January 2023 > 1st November 2023

1st January 2022 > 31st Dec 2022

1st January 2021 > 31st Dec 2021

1st January 2020 > 31st Dec 2020

1st January 2019 > 31st Dec 2019

Please note: if you are unable to retrieve five years of data for the above-requested information within the available FOI cost limit, please reduce the number of years to the last three years, or as far back as possible, to the latest available date.

1 and 2. Please see below table for both cigarettes and vapes.  Please note, we started recording vape seizures in 2022, when the issue emerged. 

3.

• 2022 – 15 seizures from 15 premises.
• 2023 – 22 seizures from 18 premises.

4 and 5. Please note, the below relates to vapes only.  Lincolnshire Trading Standards do not issue fines to businesses distributing non compliant vapes, such as on the spot penalty notices.  Fines would be issued through criminal cases taken through the courts by Lincolnshire Trading Standards.  As such, cases can take a long time to reach an outcome at court, not all cases will have concluded and so the below does not always relate to the year the product was seized.  Furthermore, criminal prosecutions are not the only enforcement route followed for sellers of non compliant vapes.  Warning notices, cautions, closure orders, etc, are all other available outcomes within our enforcement policy, which takes account of previous history.  The below is just those that have been through the courts and resulted in a fine.  Court cases can also result in other sanctions, such as community orders, custody, etc.   

• 2022 – One fine - £1500
• 2023 – Five fines - £40, £1200 (repeat underage sale of vapes), £250, £1000, £500 – Eight further cases pending investigation and/or court outcome.