Wollongong stores sell illegal nicotine vapes 'under the counter' as their popularity among young people soars

It's an "under the counter" scenario but when the Illawarra Mercury visited four shops within a kilometre of Crown Street Mall on Friday, we had no problem.

We were able to purchase nicotine vapes without showing any prescription or identification at two locations, and offered multiple brands and flavours.

Former University of Wollongong vape researcher Dr Jody Morgan, who has done the same, says the popularity of vapes and e-cigarettes among young people continues to soar.

More than one-in-five young adults aged 18 to 24 have tried vaping, according to figures released this week from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

For kids aged 15 to 17, this figure drops to one in 12, but it's likely to be far more, Dr Morgan said.

Read more: Shocking footage shows drunk, naked woman stab Wollongong policeman

"For most of them, either their parents fill out the survey, or they fill it out in the presence of their parents," said Dr Jody Morgan, who now lectures at the University of Sydney.

Kim Slattery, a University of Wollongong student who vapes socially, said she's concerned for young people like her brother, who has just started high school.

"He attends the same high school that I went to, and when I attended the 'vape movement' was just beginning," Ms Slattery said.

"Now, my brother says that young kids are taking breaks in class and throughout lunch just to smoke in the bathrooms.

"The school has had to lock bathrooms during class hours just so they can minimise the amount of smoking [vapes] occurring on the school grounds."

Read more: What's inside Illegal nicotine vapes? Not what they say on the packet

Vapes and e-cigarettes with nicotine can be highly addictive, and often contain higher levels of nicotine than the packaging says, according to Dr Morgan's research.

The Mercury spoke to a 23-year-old Wollongong student about her experience trying to quit nicotine vapes.

"It started as a social thing, someone would bring a vape on a night out, and it turned into a habit, just having it in my hand, having it near me," she said.

"Now, whenever I don't have one, I'm thinking 'where's my vape'," she said.

She has tried to quit three times, only to return to vaping.

"I'll get frustrated and think 'f..k this I want to vape'. I smoked off and on, but I was never a smoker. I even bought a pack of cigarettes to stop myself from vaping," she said.

Like many young people in the Illawarra, she buys her vapes from tobacconists but says local drug dealers now have them, too - and at cheaper prices.

"They're usually around $30, but people can charge whatever price they want. Drug dealers generally charge less," she said.

NSW Police were approached for comment but referred The Mercury to NSW Health as the "lead agency" on nicotine vapes.

"Police do have powers in relation to e-cigarettes and work with NSW Health in relation to enforcement," a spokesperson from NSW Police said.

The Illawarra Mercury newsroom is funded by our readers. You can subscribe to support our journalism here.