The number of fines issued for selling e-cigarettes or vaping products to under-18s - Find a freedom of information request

1. A quarterly breakdown since 1 April 2021 of the number of fines issued for selling e-cigarettes or vaping products to under-18s. I'd also like to know the average fine handed out. If this is not information you hold, could you tell me the total amount paid in fines, so I can work out the average myself.

2. A quarterly breakdown since 1 April 2021 of the number of fines issued for selling illegal e-cigarettes or vaping products. I'd also like to know the average fine handed out. If this is not information you hold, could you tell me the total amount paid in fines, so I can work out the average myself.

Please make clear if the answers to points 1 and 2 contain fines which fall into both categories.

If you are encountering cost issues because of the volume of data requested, please prioritise the most recent data.

Lincolnshire County Council (LCC) 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 LCC.  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. 

Vape seizures have been recorded since 2022. 

The below cases have all been criminal prosecutions. The level of fine issued may differ depending on the history of the business or individual or the case details – i.e if other illicit products (eg tobacco) were also seized at the time.  4 further prosecutions are currently pending for non compliant vapes.