Closure order secured for Stockton shop

A Stockton shop has been shut down for selling counterfeit and illicit cigarettes and vapes to its customers. 

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council secured a three-month closure order of the First Stop store at 3 Dovecot Street, Stockton at Teesside Magistrates' Court yesterday (Wednesday, 9 April).

The court heard that several complaints about sales of illegal tobacco and vapes were made to the Council between January and March 2025. 

When the Council's Trading Standards officers investigated, they found evidence that illicit and counterfeit products were being sold.

Test purchases not only confirmed that illicit cigarettes were being sold from the shop, but illegal vapes were also purchased during an underage sales test purchase. In addition, Trading Standards Officers seized over 170 packs of illicit tobacco and almost 550 illegal vapes from the premises. 

The cigarette packets had no identification numbers and were not in standardised packaging as required by The Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015. Some of the packets also did not include the required health warnings.                          

The Court also heard how a packet of cigarettes could be bought from the shop for £5, well below the average cost.

The Council's Cabinet Member for Access, Communities and Community Safety, Councillor Norma Stephenson, said: "Illicit cigarettes can be extremely harmful because it's difficult to know what they contain. 

"I'd like to thank the team for their work to secure this closure order and I hope it serves as a warning that businesses must take their legal obligations seriously or face the consequences. I'd also encourage local people to report any sales of illicit/counterfeit tobacco to us so we can take the necessary action."

Lord Michael Bichard, Chair of National Trading Standards, said: "The trade in illegal tobacco harms local communities and affects honest businesses operating within the law. Having removed 27 million illegal cigarettes, 7,500kg of hand rolling tobacco and almost 175kg of shisha products from sale, the National Trading Standards initiative in partnership with HMRC continues to successfully disrupt this illicit trade."