A council sting operation over the Easter half-term has exposed four local businesses selling either alcohol or vapes to underage children.
On 7 April, underage volunteers visited 16 premises in Barking and Dagenham and attempted to purchase alcohol – one local business tested sold alcohol to a minor.
On 9 April, 10 businesses were visited by underage volunteers attempting to buy vapes – three local businesses sold to them.
Businesses caught not abiding by the law and not making reasonable age checks before selling age restricted products will now face licence reviews and/or prosecutions, depending on their records.
Barking and Dagenham Council operate a zero-tolerance policy on the sale of age restricted goods such as knives, alcohol, vapes, and tobacco products to children. Several businesses have been successfully prosecuted in recent years for failure to comply with the law.
In the past 12 months, the Council’s Trading Standards team have:
- Seized 5,929 illegal vapes worth £71,148
- Carried out 89 underage test purchases using volunteers
- Signed up 90 premises to the Responsible Retailer scheme for vape products.
Cllr Syed Ghani, Cabinet Member for Enforcement and Community Safety, said: “No business in this borough should be selling vapes, alcohol or any other age restricted product to our children and young people.
“We are committed to coming down hard on any businesses risking our children's safety by selling them these products.”
If you suspect any businesses is selling age-restricted products to young people, please report it to: tradingstandards@lbbd.gov.uk
The council encourages all businesses to sign up to its Responsible Retailer Scheme and follow best practice guidelines to help keep their businesses and B&D’s residents safe. This includes:
1. Age verification checks at point of sale
2. Challenge 21 / Challenge 25 policy in place
3. Comprehensive staff training on age-restricted sales
4. Use of till prompts to flag restricted items
5. Clear signage, store layout, and active CCTV monitoring
6. Having a refusal register to track denied sales
For further advice on age restricted products, see this link https://www.lbbd.gov.uk/trading-standards-advice-businesses/age-restricted-sales