Now that we are all increasingly using online shopping to buy these things like LED lights, switches, downlighters, etc., we assume that these things are all made to the same standards aren’t they? I mean, they wouldn’t allow dodgy electrical goods to be sold online, would they?
Alas, this is sadly not the case**. No self-respecting High Street retailer would sell you fake or sub-standard products because Trading Standards (such as they are) can walk right in to the shop, check their stocks and seize any counterfeit goods. Online retailers and ‘car boot’ emporiums (like Amazon, eBay and Gumtree) are not subject to the same rules, however. If you find that the dodgy bargain mobile charger you bought online for £1:99 wrecks your phone (or burns down your house), then you (not Trading Standards) have to take the supplier (not the online marketplace that hosts them) to court. Where the original supplier is based abroad (as many are), I wish you luck with that. Even if lots of people were all to complain loudly about these goods, the counterfeiters simply pack up shop and launch themselves under a new name the following day. The online marketplaces like Amazon and eBay argue that they are tackling such fraudsters, in particular by offering a new browser extension called CheckitOut to validate purchases. The problem is of course that the extension doesn’t stop you buying any counterfeit/shoddily-made products, it just says they are sold by a ‘third party seller’, which means nothing to the average shopper, and the lure of a cheaper alternative is often too much to ignore.
My advice? Well, being an electrician I would say ‘use a sparky to get your electrical fittings’ wouldn’t I, but here are my suggestions:
- Do use an electrician to both buy and fit your new items – that way he/she takes responsibility if the items are fake/unsuitable/broken on delivery/incomplete/etc. Plus you don’t have to pay for the bits until after they’ve been fitted. A win-win.
- Buy from a reputable supplier (i.e. an established household name) that has real bricks-and-mortar shops from which you can pick up (and potentially return) the goods. Online fakers use their physical anonymity to hide from the real public and run off with your money. Also, check that the supplier’s address and the Companies House register matches. Avoid any suppliers outside the UK or the EU.
- Look for British Standard kitemarks on the item, especially in the photos. You can check if these are genuine on the BSI website. There is now (after Brexit) a new UKCA (UK Conformity Assessment) logo on many UK-origin electrical goods. Fake items try to copy these features and typically get the logo design wrong (or reversed), or the relevant British Standard number from something unconnected to what you’re buying.
- Look for European Standards (the CE markings) being met: like the British Standards, these too can be faked, but it is harder to do because (for example) the product documentation must specify the standards are being met in all the EU countries languages. If the item comes with no documentation (or badly translated gobbledegook) then it is probably a dud. Again, the CE marking has a specific layout, which the fakers don’t realise or can’t be bothered to copy.
- Seriously, look at the quality of the thing you are buying. Does it look like the picture on the catalogue or website? Is it well finished, has no sharp edges, fits well together and is dimensionally sound? Do any connectors or plugs look solid? No? There’s a reason for that – the factories that copy these goods are run on a shoestring, and pay workers piecework rates to thrash out these things using generic tools. Fake Gucci bags are one thing, but dangerous electrical items are risking people’s lives and these criminals do need to be taken off the pitch.
One last thing: if you are sadly the victim of being ripped off by buying fake or unsuitable goods, you can at least fight back by reporting the crooks to the Action Fraud website so that others can be warned and the Police/Trading Standards can take steps to shut down their activities.
** If you want to help stop online marketplaces avoiding their responsibilities like this, you can help by signing a petition raised by the charity http://www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk here.
Talking Electrical Ltd 