The owner of Cumbria’s biggest vape shop has been prosecuted after scores of counterfeit products were seized from his premises.
Leighton John Dodds, 41, launched Cumbria Vapes as a limited company in 2018. It operates from two units at the Market Hall in central Carlisle and, city magistrates heard today, has a daily turnover of £5,000 and hundreds of visitors each day.
In November, 2021, following a visit from trading standards officials, Dodds was sent a letter warning him he was selling vapes which did not comply with legal requirements.
In March, 2022, following a test purchase, he was again alerted to further product non-compliance which had been seen.
But the following month, when 106 single-use vapes were seized from his business and later tested, a host of failings were found.
Jonathan Farnworth, prosecuting for Cumberland Council, said liquid nicotine tank sizes contained within the vapes were too large — up to six times the legal limit in some cases. “If you are above 3,000 puffs (total inhalations per vape) your tank size is too big,” Mr Farnworth told magistrates.
Nicotine levels in vape products were too high, there was no information leaflet provided which warned of their addictiveness, toxicity and also detailed at-risk groups; health warnings were also noted to be incorrectly displayed on packaging.
During a voluntary interview, Dodds said he was aware of products containing bigger tanks which came from China and were banned in the UK. He spoke of buying products from Manchester but would not say exactly where amid concerns that the supplier would not source them to him any more.
Mr Farnworth told the court: “The Crown say Mr Dodds was clearly aware and had to make sure what he was selling was compliant with safety regulations; that he was advised previously about tank sizes and to check his products were compliant.
“But essentially he has gone and done it anyway, turned a blind eye and did not make proper checks as he should have done.”
In court, Dodds pleaded guilty — both on behalf of himself and also his company — to nine offences under the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations which committed in March and April, 2022.
Mr Farnworth told the court that vapes which met Medicines & Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency guideline were deemed less harmful than smoking and designed to reduce nicotine intake.
“But nicotine was a highly addictive substance and, said the prosecutor of vapes, the jury is out about health concerns further down the line.
Mairi Clancy gave mitigation for Dodds, of Caradoc Close, Washington, Tyne and Wear. He had taken clear steps to prevent further non-compliance, the majority of his products were now sourced from the UK’s largest supplier and — in response to the blind eye suggestion — she said Dodds only became aware of what were accepted to be counterfeit goods when interviewed.
There had been no cases of non-compliance by Dodds either before the offences he admitted or since, and legal proceedings, said Ms Clancy, had been a wake-up call.
“He is embarrassed and he is quite ashamed to find himself before the court today,” said the lawyer.
Dodds, she said, ran a perfectly legitimate business and was a relatively successful self-made businessman with a family to support. He had invested in facial recognition technology as he sought to ensure that no vapes were sold to minors.
Magistrates fined Dodds as an individual a total of £4,730. Cumbria Vapes Ltd was fined £8,000. In each case, £1,000 costs were imposed along with mandatory victim surcharges.
