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Counterfeit Goods                

Ever bought a DVD from a car boot sale only to find it's really poor quality? Bought a cheap copy T-shirt that has fallen to pieces in the wash?

Counterfeit goods mean items that are made to look like well-known brands. With new technology becoming more available to criminals nearly everything now can be copied.  The government says fakes cost the country £1.5 billion a year and the loss of  4,100 jobs.

Things that can be counterfeited include sportswear, designer label clothing, children’s toys, perfume, cosmetics and champagne. You should also be wary about buying CDs and cassettes, as these are often fakes, as are videotapes and DVDs.

According to a group that campaigns against fakes they make up:

• 12% of toys and sports items sold

• 11% of clothing and footwear sold

• 10% of perfume and toiletries sold

You might think buying a counterfeit item can seem like a good way to buy a designer item at a cheap price. However, what you may not realise is that part of the reason why you can get these items cheaper than the real thing is because they are badly made, and sometimes even dangerous. For example, fake Tetley teabags have been found containing metal filings, floor sweepings and mouse droppings. Even car parts such as brake pads have been copied, which could cause fatal accidents if used.

Trading Standards departments seize fake goods every year and can prosecute the people who copy and distribute them. Last year 100,000 DVDs, computer games and CDs were seized from car boot sales and houses in Staffordshire, and 2.14 tonnes were sent for recycling. Often the disc inside a DVD case contained a different film from the one advertised on the cover, had no sound, or was even dubbed into a foreign language. Not a bargain after all! With counterfeit goods you do not know what you are buying. The only guarantee on counterfeit goods is that if someone had sold you a dud you can guarantee they won’t be at the car boot the week after to give you your money back

Items like DVDs, CDs and computer games are covered by copyright. It is an offence to perform any of the following acts without the consent of the copyright owner:

• Copy the work.

• Rent, lend or issue copies of the work to the public

• Perform, broadcast or show the work in public.

• Adapt the work.

So remember:

·  You don’t know what you’re buying if you buy fake

·  Fakes are always poorer quality

•  It is illegal to copy anything that is copywritten (CDs, DVDs, computer games, sportswear, designer labels etc)