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You buy a vape from a shop on the high street. Nothing looks unusual but after charging the unit and using it for a few days, you notice it is getting hotter and hotter.

The vape is a fake and one of the thousands on sale illegally in shops around the UK. By not installing a simple circuit to prevent overheating, the manufacturers have saved a couple of pence but risk it catching fire.

About 5m illegal devices have been seized over the last three years by councils, according to figures collated by the legitimate vape industry.

John Dunne, the head of the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA), says illegal vapes may cause damage to people’s health as they have not gone through the same testing regime as legal devices.

“Where the packaging might look similar and the product itself may look similar, these companies may not have the same safety features built into the device, because the copycats tend to try and make the product as cheap as possible,” he says.

Figures from local authorities supplied to the UKVIA put the street value of seized vapes at £39m over the past three years. The seizures were made in shops but large numbers of fake devices were also seized at transport hubs including Luton airport and Dover.

Other non-compliant e-cigarettes had higher nicotine concentration levels, contained banned ingredients or oversized tanks for nicotine liquid.

What it looks like

Buying a fake, and potentially harmful, vape is an easy mistake to make, says Dunne, as the packaging may be identical to the ones you usually use.

One of the key telltale signs is if the box does not have a UK distributor’s address on it. “Then it’s definitely dodgy because that’s one of the requirements … all legal vapes in the country have to have a UK representative marked clearly on the packaging,” he says.

Other signs are poor-quality packaging with low-resolution photos or labels. It should also show nicotine warnings and a full ingredient list. The device name or labelling may also be written in a foreign language.

In a recent police raid, serial numbers on boxes, which should be individual to each item, were found to be the same.

What to do

Check the packaging for the signs above and avoid buying the device if anything on it rings alarm bells.

If you do not recognise a brand name you can check whether its has been registered with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) through its site.

You can file a report through the UKVIA about a retailer you believe to be selling an illegal product.

If you find that you have unwittingly bought a fake vape, take pictures of it and send details of where you bought it to your local Trading Standards office.