Barnet crackdown removes unsafe goods from shops

beehiveweb.co.uk editorial team 2026-06-09 18:32 4 min read

View down a supermarket grocery aisle in a typical London store.

More than £3.6 million worth of illegal tobacco, vapes and other goods were taken out of circulation in Barnet during the 2025-26 financial year, according to figures reported by Barnet Council.

The total includes £504,109.03 in goods seized by Barnet Trading Standards during the year, plus a separate HMRC seizure of 3.6 tonnes of tobacco worth £3,121,200 during a single council-led operation.

The figures, presented to the council’s Licensing & General Purposes Committee, show enforcement officers dealing not only with illicit tobacco and illegal vapes, but also toys, cosmetics, jewellery, electrical items, medication and clothing.

Illegal tobacco and vapes dominated the seizures

Barnet Trading Standards said it seized 16,001 tobacco-related products and 7,802 vapes across the financial year. The HMRC container seizure added the equivalent of 72,000 hand-rolling tobacco pouches to the wider total.

That does not mean every local shop was involved, and the report does not present the figures as a borough-wide trend in consumer behaviour. It does show the scale of products officers say were found outside legal supply chains or failing compliance rules.

Similar enforcement work has been reported elsewhere in England, including shop closures linked to illegal vape sales, as councils and police forces focus on unsafe goods, underage sales and hidden tobacco supplies.

What Barnet officers removed from circulation

Goods seized	Number reported
Tobacco-related products	16,001
Vapes	7,802
Dangerous or potentially lethal toys	1,145
Non-compliant cosmetics	850
Jewellery	453
Electrical items	56
Medical products	46
Clothing items	29

The toy, cosmetics and medical product figures matter because Trading Standards work is not limited to tax loss or counterfeit branding. Non-compliant products can also raise safety concerns for families, young people and vulnerable consumers.

Barnet crackdown removes unsafe goods from shops

In one Colindale shop in May 2025, officers seized 1,368 items worth about £12,500. Barnet Council said the items included non-compliant cosmetics, unsafe toys, trademark-infringing perfumes, illegal vapes and illicit tobacco-related products.

The business owner received a caution and was ordered to pay council costs because it was treated as a first offence. The council said the owner worked with officers on future compliance.

Prosecutions, closure orders and landlord fines

The council said it secured two criminal prosecutions, leading to £12,398.27 in fines and £6,350.27 in costs. A further 12 cases are awaiting criminal prosecution.

Barnet Trading Standards also obtained three closure orders against businesses involved in unlawful trading. Alcohol licence reviews have begun against four further premises.

The same annual report also records 18 fines issued to letting agents and landlords for breaches of legislation, totalling £123,800. Those penalties sit alongside the product safety and illicit goods work, showing the team’s wider consumer protection role in the borough.

Another major operation, Operation Dinar, took place in December with Haringey and Barnet Trading Standards officers and the Metropolitan Police. Officers targeted two businesses and two residential addresses, seizing 1,621 packets of illicit cigarettes, 2,435 illegal vapes, 59 pouches of hand-rolling tobacco, counterfeit perfumes, shisha tobacco, prescription-only medication and more than £4,000 in cash.

Barnet Council said a further £20,617.79 had been seized from bank accounts, £16,211 had been frozen, and £3,360 was subject to a detention order. The council is pursuing criminal prosecution.

Knife sales checks led to formal investigations

Trading Standards officers and the Metropolitan Police also visited businesses selling knives as part of Operation Sceptre. The visits included advice about legal responsibilities, including restrictions on selling knives to underage customers.

In later inspections, three businesses sold knives to underage volunteers. The council said those businesses are now under formal investigation, with files submitted for criminal prosecution.

For residents, the report gives a clearer picture of how enforcement moves from advice to investigation. It also shows that test purchasing remains part of local checks where age-restricted products are sold.

Businesses were also offered compliance help

Barnet Council said its Trading Standards team helped 162 businesses understand relevant laws and regulations during the 2025-26 financial year.

Cllr Ross Houton, Deputy Leader of Barnet Council, said: “We will not tolerate businesses who sell unsafe or illegal products in our borough. But we’re also here to help businesses ensure they don’t get into trouble with us. If you know a business that is selling illicit products, please tell us. If you’re a business that needs help complying with regulations, then please get in touch.”

Source: Barnet Council

Context & actions About this article

Source check Source trail

This article is based on Barnet Council’s published summary of its Trading Standards annual report for the 2025-26 financial year.

Checks

Matched the reported seizure totals against the council’s listed product categories.
Separated the £504,109.03 Trading Standards total from the HMRC container seizure worth £3...
Checked that enforcement outcomes, including prosecutions, closure orders and landlord fin...
Kept the local scope to Barnet rather than treating the figures as a national trend.

Barnet Council Check wider coverage