Don’t be thinking you are getting a bargain, there’s a very real cost for consumers and the public
things would have come in through ports and borders. They still do and get stopped routinely by UK border force and HMRC (Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs) and by Trading Standards working at ports and borders.
“Also, the Office of Product Safety and Standards, a new organisation set up last year, has now obtained responsibility for doing checks on ports and borders on behalf of the Trading Standards Service.
“These products are still coming through in large containers.
“But we do find that people, particularly the bedroom counterfeiter, orders them in small enough quantities that they can be impossible to detect and they get through.
“Many are stopped at some of the postal halts and some of the border force teams identify them too.
“But many get through and end up getting delivered to your door and once you have them you put them on social media sites and sell them.”
Previously the work of Trading Standards would have centred around markets and retail premises, but this has decreased as individuals get involved from the comfort of their own home.
Mr Doherty says one of the most common misconceptions is the notion that it is a “victimless crime”.
People have lost their lives in the manufacture of products when, for example, factories producing counterfeit alcohol have exploded.
“Counterfeiting funds organised crime gangs, it funds criminality, there is no tax paid back into the Treasury,” he adds.
“When this money is taken away from legitimate business there is no re-investment.
“They also have no consideration for the health and well-being of the individuals that buy their product.
“They have very little consideration for the people making the product as well, in many cases they use child labour in factories in the Far East.
“There can be very catastrophic circumstances, where factories have blown up, in particular when they are making products such as alcohol, and people have lost their lives.
“Don’t be thinking you are getting a bargain, there is a very real cost for consumers and for the public.”
To beat the counterfeiters, consumers need to be alert and scrutinise products — as such is the level of the crime, some items are even making their way into the genuine supply chain.
Trading Standards recently seized shampoo and toothpaste from a high street chain that thought they were legit.
Mr Doherty says to look out for things like spelling mistakes, strange smells and question where you are getting it from — would that brand have authorised this venue or person to sell this product?
“If you are buying Benefit make-up or Chanel or MAC or Urban Decay and it’s not in one of the approved authorised retailers, you need to ask questions.
“Unless it’s a bought and owned product that hasn’t been used, that’s for sale on the likes of eBay or any other classified sales sites, you need to start asking questions as to why someone would have the authority to sell a particular product.
“You also have to look at the price, invariably it would be cheaper than you would be buying it in the likes of House of Fraser or Debenhams or Boots, and again ask yourself why and how someone is going to sell MAC make-up at a 50% discount or 75% off the normal cost.”
He adds: “People need to be aware that a lot of products are counterfeited and in such large scale that they are on sale routinely throughout Northern Ireland and in many cases they are actually infiltrating the genuine supply chain.
“We have seized counterfeit shampoo and toothpaste from major high street retailers in the past.
“And they have no reason to believe the product was fake and they had got it from an approved distributor.”
Detective Chief Inspector Brian Foster from PSNI’s Organised Crime Task Force has urged the public not to “help fund” the individuals involved.
He says: “Consumers buying counterfeit goods may see the sub-standard materials and replica logos as a small price to pay for cut-price designer brand products.
“However, not only can many of the products cause physical harm to individuals, purchasing counterfeit goods may ultimately fund other illegal activities.
“We continue to see organised crime groups and paramilitaries involved in the supply of counterfeit goods as a way to generate income.
“These profits can then be used to fund further criminality such as the purchase of firearms, drug dealing and human trafficking — all with the aim of lining the pockets of paramilitaries and criminals.”
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