A recent undercover operation in Gloucestershire revealed that 80% of the stores visited sold corrosive products to underage buyers.
Gloucestershire Trading Standards, with support from police cadets, conducted visits to 10 stores and eight of them made sales to underage volunteers.
The volunteers visited stores across Gloucester, Cheltenham, Stroud, the Forest of Dean and Tewkesbury.
Eight businesses sold a product containing corrosive substances to a young person under 18, without any checks on their age or requests for identification, said Gloucestershire Trading Standards.
The products sold included brick and patio cleaner, plughole unblocker and caustic soda drain unblocker.
The Offensive Weapons Act 2019 makes it an offence to sell certain products which contain a high percentage of corrosive chemicals to under 18s. Products that have a high percentage of chemicals can be dangerous if not used correctly, said Gloucestershire Trading Standards.
Gloucestershire Trading Standards would be contacting the shops that failed the test to inform them of the sale and offer advice on their legal obligations, it said.
It warned of prosecution if these businesses do not heed the advice and evidence of selling to minors is found in the future.
Cllr Dave Norman, cabinet member for trading standards at Gloucestershire County Council, commented: “It’s disappointing to see that a number of retailers in the county have sold products containing corrosive substances to underage buyers. It’s important they seek advice and ensure that age-restricted goods are not sold to young people. Our Trading Standards team will be offering relevant advice to these businesses.”
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