According to The Loadstar recently reported that e-cigarette retailer Vape Club recently released data showing that the UK freight terminals, airports and seaports have become the main places where illegal e-cigarettes have proliferated.
The investigation by Vape Club, the UK's largest e-cigarette retailer, found that London's main airports, the ports of Manchester and Dover, were being used as supply routes to "fuel the UK's illegal e-cigarette epidemic". The survey found that in 2023, these areas will have the highest number of e-cigarette seizures, accounting for 42% of the total seizures in the UK. According to the report on illegal e-cigarettes in 2024, more than 1.5 million illegal e-cigarettes were seized in the UK in 2023, with the Port of Dover having the highest number of illegal e-cigarettes seized at more than 250,000. This was followed by Hillington, while 158,434 illegal e-cigarettes were seized at Manchester Airport.
"This finding raises concerns about potentially dangerous illegal e-cigarettes being imported across the UK border," the report states.
Dan Marchant, a director at the agency, said the UK government's recent proposed single-use e-cigarette ban has "opened more doors to the black market in illegal e-cigarettes" and called on Trading Standards and local authorities to step up penalties.
