BARGAIN-hunters in Scotland’s winter sales have been urged to steer clear of the rising trade in counterfeit goods as experts warn that apart from poor quality, they could contain harmful components.
And imitation food and drink products passed off as the real thing could have serious health consequences, it was claimed.
The warnings came from the Scottish Business Resilience Centre (SBRC) and Glasgow-based intellectual property lawyers Lawrie IP.
Gary Ritchie, head of retail and tourism resilience at the SBRC, believes consumers should realise that fake goods are not harmless bargains.
“Undoubtedly, winter sales are some of the busiest times of the year for retail – and customers should simply abide by the old saying, ‘if it’s too good to be true, it probably is’,” he said.
“Online retailing has made the problem somewhat less visible, compared to days of old when fake items could be spotted more easily.
“Without doubt it is a much greater issue now – and the sale of counterfeit goods is even apparent on the biggest online shopping websites.
“There are also real dangers with these goods, like electrical fires, shocks and burns – not to mention the serious organised crime benefitting from the trade.”
A significant proportion of counterfeit products being intercepted are electrical, such as hair straighteners, phone chargers, video games, tablets and e-books, but also extend to concert and event tickets.
Lawrie IP has issued tips to help people identify and avoid fakes.
Sharon Mackison, a director at the firm, said: “In Scotland, as in other countries, fake products can be a major problem over the festive period.
“Most consumers who buy counterfeit products do so either because they don’t realise or because they don’t think it’s something to care about.
“But there are a number of reasons why consumers should care whether a product they are buying is a fake.”
The firm say fake products may have been unethically manufactured by people in poor working conditions or who have been victims of human trafficking.
They could also contain harmful parts or ingredients.
Fake cosmetics could contain dangerous chemicals, and toys could have illegal levels of chemicals or exploding batteries.
Consumers were urged to seek out genuine products to avoid the dangers of consuming fake booze which can lead to kidney or liver problems and even blindness.
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