Barnet crackdown pulls £3.6m goods from circulation

By hiyastar.co.uk News Desk

Barnet residents were exposed to thousands of illegal or potentially unsafe products in the past financial year, according to new figures from Barnet Council’s Trading Standards team.

The council says officers removed £504,109.03 worth of illegal goods from circulation in 2025-26, including tobacco products, vapes, toys, cosmetics, jewellery, electrical items and medication. A further 3.6 tonnes of tobacco, valued at £3,121,200, was seized from a container by HMRC during a single council-led operation.

Taken together, the figures show a broad enforcement year rather than one isolated case. They do not prove that illegal trading is rising across the borough, but they do show the range of goods that officers found in shops, businesses and linked premises.

More than 24,000 tobacco and vape items seized

The largest categories were tobacco-related products and vapes, two areas that have become regular targets for Trading Standards teams across the UK because of tax evasion, age-restricted sales and product safety concerns.

The seizure of 1,145 dangerous or potentially lethal toys is especially relevant for families, because unsafe toys can involve choking risks, toxic materials, poor labelling or other failures that would not always be obvious at the point of sale.

Non-compliant cosmetics and medical products also raise consumer protection concerns. These goods may lack required safety information, contain undeclared ingredients, or be sold in ways that prevent buyers from understanding the risks.

Enforcement moved beyond shop shelves

Barnet Trading Standards secured two criminal prosecutions during the year, resulting in fines of £12,398.27 and costs awarded of £6,350.27. A further 12 cases are awaiting criminal prosecution.

The council also issued 18 fines to letting agents and landlords for breaches of legislation, totalling £123,800. That means the annual report covered wider consumer and regulatory enforcement, not only retail seizures.

Three closure orders were obtained against businesses involved in unlawful trading. Barnet Council also began alcohol licence reviews against four further premises, a step that can affect whether businesses are allowed to continue selling alcohol under existing conditions.

Knife sale checks led to prosecution files

The council and Metropolitan Police visited businesses selling knives as part of Operation Sceptre, giving advice on the rules around age-restricted sales. During later inspections, three businesses sold knives to underage volunteers.

Those businesses are now under formal investigation, with files submitted for criminal prosecution. The detail matters locally because the initial visits were advisory, meaning the later failures happened after businesses had already been reminded of the rules.

Barnet Trading Standards also assisted 162 firms during the 2025-26 financial year to help them understand and comply with relevant regulations. That support role sits alongside the enforcement work and is aimed at preventing breaches before goods reach customers.

Colindale shop and Operation Dinar among major cases

In December, Haringey and Barnet Trading Standards officers worked with Metropolitan Police on Operation Dinar, targeting two businesses and two residential addresses in a single day. They seized 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.

A further £20,617.79 has been seized from bank accounts, while £16,211 has been frozen and £3,360 is subject to a detention order. Barnet Council says it is pursuing criminal prosecution.

In May 2025, officers seized 1,368 items worth around £12,500 from one Colindale shop, including 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 the council’s costs because it was treated as a first-time offence and they worked with officers on future compliance.

Similar enforcement has been seen elsewhere, including tobacco and vape closure cases and raids linked to illegal goods in other English cities.

Cllr Ross Houton, Deputy Leader of Barnet Council, said the borough would not tolerate businesses selling unsafe or illegal products, while also urging firms that need help complying with regulations to contact Trading Standards.

Source: Barnet Council