Barnet seizures remove illegal goods from shops

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

Metropolitan police car driving past high street shops in a London borough.

By demoduck.co.uk News Desk

Barnet enforcement officers removed more than £500,000 of illegal goods from local circulation in the 2025-26 financial year, with a separate council-led bust leading HMRC to seize tobacco valued at more than £3.1 million.

The figures, reported to Barnet Council’s Licensing & General Purposes Committee, show the scale of work carried out by Barnet Trading Standards across shops, premises and related investigations. The goods included tobacco products, vapes, toys, cosmetics, jewellery, medication, electrical items and clothing.

The numbers do not prove that every category of unlawful trading is rising in Barnet. They do show how much was found and removed during a single year of inspections, raids, investigations and partnership work.

More than 24,000 tobacco and vape items seized

Barnet Trading Standards seized 16,001 tobacco-related products and 7,802 vapes during the year. Officers also removed 1,145 dangerous or potentially lethal toys, 850 non-compliant cosmetics and smaller quantities of jewellery, electrical goods, medical products and clothing.

Goods seized	Quantity
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	29

The report put the value of illegal goods removed from circulation at £504,109.03. In addition, HMRC seized 3.6 tonnes of tobacco from a container during a single council-led operation. Barnet Council said that haul was worth £3,121,200, equivalent to 72,000 hand-rolling pouches.

For residents, the risk is not limited to lost tax revenue or counterfeit branding. Illegal vapes and tobacco can avoid safety checks, while unsafe toys, cosmetics and medication may reach households without meeting legal standards.

Colindale shop case shows the mix of products found

One Colindale shop accounted for 1,368 seized items in May 2025, worth around £12,500. Barnet Council said officers found non-compliant cosmetics, unsafe toys, trademark-infringing perfumes, illegal vapes and illicit tobacco-related products.

Barnet seizures remove illegal goods from shops

The business owner received a caution and was ordered to pay the council’s costs. The council said it was treated as a first-time offence and the business worked with Trading Standards Officers on future compliance.

The Barnet case sits within a wider pattern of local Trading Standards action across England, including similar enforcement against illegal tobacco and unsafe toys in Coventry.

Prosecutions, closure orders and landlord fines

The council secured two criminal prosecutions during the financial year, resulting in fines of £12,398.27 and costs of £6,350.27. A further 12 cases were awaiting criminal prosecution.

Barnet Trading Standards also obtained three closure orders against businesses involved in unlawful trading and began alcohol licence reviews against four further premises.

Housing enforcement formed another part of the year’s work. Eighteen fines were issued to letting agents and landlords for breaches of legislation, totalling £123,800.

The report also records targeted knife-sale checks under Operation Sceptre, run with the Metropolitan Police. Officers visited businesses selling knives and gave advice on the rules, including the ban on sales to underage customers.

The checks add to local attention on knife-sale rules after a separate Barnet retailer enforcement case.

In later test-purchase inspections, three businesses sold knives to underage volunteers. Files have been submitted for criminal prosecution and the businesses are now under formal investigation.

Operation Dinar led to cash and bank seizures

In December, Haringey and Barnet Trading Standards Officers worked with the Metropolitan Police on Operation Dinar, targeting two businesses and two residential addresses in a one-day operation.

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 was seized from bank accounts, £16,211 was frozen and £3,360 is subject to a detention order. Barnet Council said it is pursuing criminal prosecution.

Businesses offered compliance help as well as enforcement

Barnet Council said its Trading Standards team also helped 162 firms understand and comply with 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 account of its Trading Standards annual report for 2025-26.

Checks

Checked seizure quantities against the figures attributed to Barnet Trading Standards.
Separated the £504,109.03 council seizure total from the separate £3,121,200 HMRC tobacco...
Kept prosecution, closure order and landlord fine figures tied to the council report.
Included the compliance support figure for businesses to avoid presenting the work as enfo...

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