30/06/2009
Fake car parts danger
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Trading standards officers have warned that many cars on UK roads could be death traps because of the number of fake spare parts being fitted.The Institute of Trading Standards ITS is calling for a crackdown on the trade in counterfeit car parts, which it says has grown from a 300 m British Pounds industry in 1994 to a 3bn British Pounds industry now.At a three day conference in Edinburgh, officers will hear about one case where a car was fitted with a brake shoe made of compressed grass, and another where a fake wheel caused a motorist to veer off the road.John Anderson, from the Anti Counterfeiting Group, says the parts problem has become a major safety issue.Steering linkages made of very low quality metal which would shear if they haven't caused a death they certainly would at some stage.In the past, counterfeit parts were mainly no safety items such as wings and body parts.Now, counterfeit items such as brake pads, brake shoes and steering linkages are appearing on the market.The problem for consumers is knowing which parts have been used.If you take your car in for a service you take in it at nine, pick it up at five there is no way in knowing what parts have been used on it.Consumers should use reputable dealers and repairers, and if they are concerned ask that only original parts are to be used.It may cost more but how much is your life worth?However, car repairers may in turn have been duped over the provenance of the parts.The ITS says some businesses are conned into buying what they believe to be genuine products.At this time ITS plans to tackle the problem in partnership with manufacturers of the genuine goods, and using undercover intelligence.Most of the parts are produced in former Eastern bloc countries such as Poland and the former USSR, and the Far East.The genuine manufacturers will employ spies in the countries of origin of the fake parts, and the ITS will then crack down as soon as the parts arrive in the UK.
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