Lincolnshire Trading Standards, assisted by the anti-piracy team at Rubie’s Masquerade, has seized a large quantity of children’s dress-up costumes from a home-based online business.
The seizure follows an operation carried out on Wednesday 24 October 24 and more than 2,200 products were found to be counterfeit. They are now being sent for testing, although they are not expected to meet the relevant safety standards.
The sole trader had based their business from home, selling online and sending the counterfeit costumes all over the UK.
“In the run up to Halloween we see a lot of novelty items placed on the market in Lincolnshire,” said senior trading standards officer Chad Saratoon.
“We consider matters of product safety very seriously and we work with manufacturers to detect counterfeit items on the market,” Chad continued. “Importers and distributors have obligations to check and ensure that the products they place on the market are safe and meet the required safety standards.
Consumers and retailers are urged to take action if they see an item that they suspect is unsafe or fake by reporting it to Trading Standards via the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 03454 04 05 06.
