The Council’s Trading Standards Team is warning Christmas shoppers of the dangers of unsafe and counterfeit goods, which look like a bargain but can cause serious harm.
Trading Standards and Police Officers have been dealing with rogue traders attempting to sell counterfeit perfume and electrical products such as fake Apple branded watches, chargers and headphones to passers-by within Coventry City Centre.
It has been confirmed that these products are counterfeit and pose significant health and fire safety risks for users.
The traders may approach you in the street and while the goods they offer look really authentic at first, they are not the great deal they appear.
The traders may claim the goods are stolen and are therefore the real product, but the products have in fact been found to be really poor quality, counterfeited copies (breaching the requirements of the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994).
Shoppers are advised not to buy from these itinerant sellers but instead to report them to the Police by calling 101.
These street traders are not the only concern at this time of year. Trading Standards want to make residents aware that online sellers may also be targeting Christmas shoppers with shoddy goods and scams. Working alongside the Intellectual Property Office, Trading Standards are promoting the #DontBlowChristmas campaign to help stop residents falling victim to various scams.
- Check the reviews of online sellers – is their rating bolstered by fake reviews?
- Is the website the official one? Look out for any spelling and grammar mistakes
- Fakes are usually shipped from abroad – is it really a UK seller as claimed?
- If the price is too good to be true then it probably is – this advice still holds true!
If you find any shops which you believe to be selling dangerous or counterfeit goods you can get advice or report the matter via the national Citizen’s Advice consumer service,