Festive warning as fakes worth £200k seized at airport

Fake goods worth around  £200,000 have been seized at Stansted Airport in the lead up to Christmas.

Festive shoppers are being warned to be careful about what they buy at Christmas by UK Border Agency officers following the seizures in recent months.

Nearly 1,800 pairs of fake Ugg boots have been detected at Stansted Airport – worth about £170,000 – since September, and in November, more than 200 pairs of bogus Dr Dre headphones, with a total value of £30,000, were seized.

Other forgeries found by agency staff included GHD hair straighteners, iPhones and designer clothing.

Phillip Holliday, UK Border Agency regional director covering Stansted, said: “Cheap counterfeits undercut honest traders and leave shoppers with goods that are at best inferior to genuine products and, at worst, harmful or unsafe.

“We are uncovering all sorts of fake goods, from beauty products to children’s toys, and we’re warning people to be particularly wary of buying cheap items online or from unofficial traders.

“It’s easy to be tricked into thinking you’re getting a bargain, but in the run-up to Christmas our message is that if something appears too good to be true, it probably is.”

After suspected counterfeit goods are detained by the agency, officers approach the rights holders to verify the products are fakes. The rights holder then decides whether to bring a private prosecution against the importer and after this, goods can be destroyed.

The Trading Standards Institute also said counterfeit goods may pose a potential health hazard.

Its chief executive, Ron Gainsford, said: “Trading standards are working hard with other authorities to stop criminals ruining consumers’ festive spirit as millions of low-quality and potentially dangerous counterfeit products are flooding the country in time for Christmas, particularly in markets, car boot sales and online.

“The external appearance and packaging of electrical goods such as chargers and hair straighteners may be copied fairly well, but the internal composition and materials are likely to be substandard and could make the item very dangerous.

“Toys, jewellery, alcohol and cigarettes might look the part but could turn out to be toxic.”