Study Finds Illegal U.K. Vape Seizures on the Rise
Port of Dover in Kent, U.K. (Credit: Alan)
Vape Club, a U.K.-based online vape retailer, reports that the U.K.’s freight terminals, airports, and seaports are now the unexpected frontline in the battle against the surge in illegal vaping products, with enough seizures for three to be sold every minute.
The report states that major London airports, Manchester and the Port of Dover, are being used as supply routes to “further the U.K.’s illegal vaping epidemic.” The data suggests that these regions saw the highest number of illegal vaping devices seized in 2023, accounting for 42 percent of the U.K.’s total.
In 2023, over one and a half million illegal vapes were seized in the U.K., according to the 2024 Illegal Vaping Report. Kent, home to the Port of Dover, was the local authority with the highest number of illegal vapes seized in 2023 at over a quarter of a million.
Heathrow Airport’s local authority, Hillingdon, seized almost a quarter of a million illegal vapes last year, and Manchester Airport saw 158,434 illegal vapes seized. “The findings raise concerns about the potentially dangerous illegal vapes entering the U.K. at its borders,” the report states.
