0:00:02 > 0:00:05Welcome to a world where nothing is quite as it seems.
0:00:05 > 0:00:07Welcome to Fake Britain.
0:00:09 > 0:00:10SHOUTING
0:00:20 > 0:00:22- Get down! Get down! - Get on the floor now!
0:00:22 > 0:00:24Put your hands behind your back now.
0:00:24 > 0:00:28Here at the Fake Britain house, things might look familiar,
0:00:28 > 0:00:33but don't be taken in, because this is a house that's filled with fakes.
0:00:33 > 0:00:36In this series, I'll be revealing the counterfeits,
0:00:36 > 0:00:40copies and cons that are flooding the market, fooling the public,
0:00:40 > 0:00:44making money for the criminals and maybe even putting you in danger.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46We'll be investigating those fraudsters
0:00:46 > 0:00:50who are cashing in by selling us something that isn't real,
0:00:50 > 0:00:55and we'll be showing you how to avoid falling for a fake.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57Today on Fake Britain -
0:00:57 > 0:01:00fraudsters faking their gas meter readings...
0:01:00 > 0:01:01There are several small holes,
0:01:01 > 0:01:05and essentially what they're now doing is providing a fake reading.
0:01:05 > 0:01:09..and the disastrous consequences this can have on innocent people.
0:01:09 > 0:01:11Move back now.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15There was a loud bang, and the house just shook.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17Have you felt the force of the fakes?
0:01:17 > 0:01:21We reveal how fake film posters have become a bit of a hit.
0:01:21 > 0:01:24Immediately knew as soon as this was unwrapped and came out of the tube
0:01:24 > 0:01:28that this was fake. I felt quite conned.
0:01:28 > 0:01:31And we uncover the shocking truth about the fake cheese
0:01:31 > 0:01:33that could be on your pizza.
0:01:33 > 0:01:37They had ingredients which were fake, and it isn't actually cheese at all.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45Almost every house and commercial property in Britain
0:01:45 > 0:01:49has one or both of these tucked away in a cupboard somewhere -
0:01:49 > 0:01:52the gas and electricity meters.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54They calculate how much energy we're using
0:01:54 > 0:01:57and so how big our bills will be.
0:01:57 > 0:02:00But across the country, meters are being tampered with
0:02:00 > 0:02:04to produce fake readings and get those bills down.
0:02:04 > 0:02:08It's been estimated £400 million worth of energy
0:02:08 > 0:02:11is stolen in the UK each year.
0:02:11 > 0:02:13As we've discovered, getting those fake bills
0:02:13 > 0:02:16could put people's lives at risk.
0:02:17 > 0:02:21This is what could happen if you tamper with your gas meter.
0:02:21 > 0:02:25I was going to say - my housemate is still in 115.
0:02:25 > 0:02:26Move back now.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29Firefighters were called to an explosion at a house on Dundas Road
0:02:29 > 0:02:33in Sheffield, a terraced street on the outskirts of the city.
0:02:36 > 0:02:39Sylvia Dixon was at home just across the road.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43There was a loud bang, and the house just shook.
0:02:43 > 0:02:47It frightened me. It frightened me, so I thought,
0:02:47 > 0:02:50"Is it a bomb? Has somebody set a bomb off?"
0:02:51 > 0:02:54The entire street was thrown into chaos
0:02:54 > 0:02:58as a suspected gas leak blew this house wide open.
0:02:58 > 0:03:00You have to move back. Come on.
0:03:00 > 0:03:02It's dangerous. Move back, there could be another explosion.
0:03:02 > 0:03:05And then I saw the smoke and the fire,
0:03:05 > 0:03:08and then I saw the young man that lived there
0:03:08 > 0:03:12more or less blown out of the house into the middle of the road.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17This man was in the house where the explosion took place,
0:03:17 > 0:03:20and suffered serious burns.
0:03:20 > 0:03:23Four other people, including children, were hospitalised,
0:03:23 > 0:03:25and 50 residents were evacuated.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28I don't think they'll ever forget it.
0:03:28 > 0:03:32You know, the people who lived there, they will never forget it.
0:03:32 > 0:03:37Deputy Chief Fire Officer Chris Blacksell is shocked by what he saw.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40Really significant type of incident to arrive at,
0:03:40 > 0:03:43because there's clearly the blast damage on the house,
0:03:43 > 0:03:46there's clearly a serious fire still ignited.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50You don't know at that stage, probably, whether there's someone still in the property.
0:03:50 > 0:03:51After the dust had settled,
0:03:51 > 0:03:53a complex investigation was carried out,
0:03:53 > 0:03:56which traced the explosion back to the gas meter.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59It showed signs that it had been tampered with.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02So what you're looking at here is the gas meter itself,
0:04:02 > 0:04:05and the pipe which would be sat on top of the gas meter,
0:04:05 > 0:04:07which is known as an anaconda to many people.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10But it's a pipe that actually goes onto the gas meter itself.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14So we're looking at someone deliberately tampering with the meter.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17And this wasn't the only one.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20The investigation also found tampered gas meters
0:04:20 > 0:04:23at five other houses in the same street.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26I think one of the really worrying things about that case
0:04:26 > 0:04:28was that, as part of the ongoing investigation,
0:04:28 > 0:04:31there were a significant number of houses down that street
0:04:31 > 0:04:34that had had their meters tampered with to try and fake their meter readings.
0:04:34 > 0:04:36So we did see other houses down that street
0:04:36 > 0:04:38where gas meters had been bypassed,
0:04:38 > 0:04:41where there'd been inappropriate pipe work put in place,
0:04:41 > 0:04:43and where there was again the risk
0:04:43 > 0:04:45of that happening again down the same street.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49And it could be happening in a house near you.
0:04:49 > 0:04:54Around 25,000 tampered meters are found in the UK each year,
0:04:54 > 0:04:58for the sole purpose of faking the meter readings.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01It's estimated that thousands more go undetected.
0:05:01 > 0:05:03May save a bit of money in the short term,
0:05:03 > 0:05:08but can put yourselves, your family at risk of dying.
0:05:08 > 0:05:10But the authorities are fighting back.
0:05:10 > 0:05:13It's 11am somewhere in the Midlands.
0:05:13 > 0:05:17British Gas Protection Officers Richard Cook and Joel Brown
0:05:17 > 0:05:18are clamping down on the criminals
0:05:18 > 0:05:20putting innocent people's lives at risk
0:05:20 > 0:05:24by faking their energy meter readings.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27It's an offence that can lead to thousands of pounds in fines
0:05:27 > 0:05:29and five years in prison.
0:05:29 > 0:05:32Richard and Joel have received intelligence that suggests
0:05:32 > 0:05:35a number of fast-food outlets in the Midlands have been tampering
0:05:35 > 0:05:38with their gas meters to deliver fake meter readings.
0:05:41 > 0:05:43The first stop is a fast-food takeaway.
0:05:45 > 0:05:47Their gas consumption, their yearly gas consumption,
0:05:47 > 0:05:50is very low for the type of property that they're trading as.
0:05:50 > 0:05:52So their gas consumption should be
0:05:52 > 0:05:55probably 10, maybe 12 times what they're actually using.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59Joel and Rich suspect this business could be using
0:05:59 > 0:06:02one of many methods to fake their meter reading.
0:06:04 > 0:06:06From British Gas. Just for the gas meter, please, mate.
0:06:06 > 0:06:08The gas reading? It's just there.
0:06:08 > 0:06:10Just in there, yeah?
0:06:10 > 0:06:12- There are several drill holes under there.- Is there?
0:06:12 > 0:06:13Have a look.
0:06:15 > 0:06:19Now, underneath here, it should just be completely sealed up.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22What we've found is, down here, there are several small holes -
0:06:22 > 0:06:24it looks to be three or four small holes.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27Joel knows the holes are a means of interfering
0:06:27 > 0:06:29with the gas meter's readings.
0:06:29 > 0:06:34Essentially what they're now doing is providing a fake reading.
0:06:34 > 0:06:36They've damaged the integrity of the meter.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39Obviously it's part of a Gas Safe installation,
0:06:39 > 0:06:41so there is the potential for a gas leak.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44This is exactly the type of unsafe practice
0:06:44 > 0:06:47that Joel, Rich and the team are determined to stamp out.
0:06:48 > 0:06:53Outside, Rich has calculated how much gas this kebab shop has used
0:06:53 > 0:06:55since they've been with British Gas -
0:06:55 > 0:06:57a period of over two months.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00So basically with interfering with the meter,
0:07:00 > 0:07:04he's actually created ultimately a fake reading, so what we've done,
0:07:04 > 0:07:06we've billed him for the shortfall of gas
0:07:06 > 0:07:09that he's prevented from being recorded on that meter.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12Calculations complete, Rich is about to find out
0:07:12 > 0:07:15the true cost of this faking operation.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17So that's the bill there for the customer.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20It's for £2,617.66.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22It's hardly loose change.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25But news of the bill is not the only thing Rich and Joel need to deliver.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28So right now, we're going to switch all the gas appliances off,
0:07:28 > 0:07:31make it safe. We've got to disconnect the meter.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33Left with no choice. OK?
0:07:33 > 0:07:36My colleague's going to come round and start switching everything off,
0:07:36 > 0:07:38and I'll get the work started, OK?
0:07:38 > 0:07:41The police will also be informed about the theft of gas
0:07:41 > 0:07:44and the meter tampering, and may decide to investigate.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46So the meter's all been removed now.
0:07:46 > 0:07:49They've got no further gas supply until it's all resolved.
0:07:49 > 0:07:52For now, they're going to hit this business where it hurts -
0:07:52 > 0:07:56with no gas supply, it's going to be forced to close.
0:07:56 > 0:07:58They won't be able to carry on trading
0:07:58 > 0:08:00until they make their full payment, and obviously,
0:08:00 > 0:08:03they're going to have to answer to whichever police investigation
0:08:03 > 0:08:06comes forward, but there'll be no more trading from this property.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11And they're not the only ones.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14In 24 hours, Joel and Rich's sweep through the Midlands
0:08:14 > 0:08:18uncovered a number of tampered meters and fake readings.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22The meter's now under registered,
0:08:22 > 0:08:24which means any readings given are now also fake.
0:08:24 > 0:08:26They're on a very busy stretch of a high street,
0:08:26 > 0:08:28so if anything were to go wrong with this meter,
0:08:28 > 0:08:32it could be quite catastrophic, obviously, towards innocent people.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34Not only were they highly dangerous,
0:08:34 > 0:08:38they were stealing tens of thousands of pounds worth of gas.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44The bill is £1,297.07.
0:08:46 > 0:08:50- How much is it?- £9,088.54.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53You don't have to pay this right now, but at the same time,
0:08:53 > 0:08:55we don't have to leave you a gas meter right now.
0:08:59 > 0:09:02Later, we find the extraordinary lengths some fraudsters
0:09:02 > 0:09:06are willing to go to in order to fake their meter readings.
0:09:06 > 0:09:08What's happened here is the customer has decided
0:09:08 > 0:09:12to use a bicycle inner tube to bridge...
0:09:12 > 0:09:14the position where the meter would be.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16In terms of danger, these are lethal.
0:09:21 > 0:09:24HE INHALES
0:09:24 > 0:09:27That smells good. There's nothing like a freshly-cooked pizza.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30This one's a cheese and tomato,
0:09:30 > 0:09:32which you might think is a bit boring.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34But it's far from boring.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37It's our next story, because it's a fake -
0:09:37 > 0:09:39not the pizza, but the cheese.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42And as we're about to show you, so-called cheese
0:09:42 > 0:09:46that isn't cheese at all is being sold to us all over Britain.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50OK, so we didn't invent it,
0:09:50 > 0:09:54but clearly we love a slice of pizza.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56It's estimated nearly two-thirds of Brits
0:09:56 > 0:09:59eat at least one pizza every month.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03A basic pizza consists of a dough base, tomato sauce
0:10:03 > 0:10:06and, of course, cheese - usually mozzarella.
0:10:06 > 0:10:10And at this South London pizzeria, that's exactly what you'll get.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17But sadly, there are pizza sellers all over the UK
0:10:17 > 0:10:19who are telling us we're getting cheese,
0:10:19 > 0:10:22but in reality giving us a fake -
0:10:22 > 0:10:26something known as cheese analogue.
0:10:26 > 0:10:28It looks and smells like cheese,
0:10:28 > 0:10:32but is missing one vital ingredient, dairy fat, and therefore,
0:10:32 > 0:10:35in the eyes of the law, it can't be labelled as cheese.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40Here at Fake Britain, we're getting a bit fed up with it,
0:10:40 > 0:10:42and so is Trading Standards Lead Officer
0:10:42 > 0:10:45for Food and Nutrition, Corinne Lowe.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49Trading Standards have been finding cheese that's been mislabelled
0:10:49 > 0:10:51in the takeaways and restaurants
0:10:51 > 0:10:54and mobile catering vans across the country.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58Cheese analogue is a much cheaper ingredient than real cheese,
0:10:58 > 0:11:00therefore they've got a bigger profit margin
0:11:00 > 0:11:05if they still charge the consumer for the price of real cheese.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09So the fraudsters are motivated by money - no surprise there, then.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13What's more, this cheese analogue has minimal nutritional value,
0:11:13 > 0:11:15and isn't even a suitable alternative
0:11:15 > 0:11:17for those with a lactose intolerance.
0:11:19 > 0:11:21Here at Fake Britain, we decided to find out
0:11:21 > 0:11:23just how widespread the problem is.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26We visited three major cities around the country
0:11:26 > 0:11:28to purchase some pizzas.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31We went to Sheffield, Birmingham and London.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35We bought ten cheese and tomato pizzas,
0:11:35 > 0:11:37clearly labelled as cheese,
0:11:37 > 0:11:40and we took them to Kent Scientific Services,
0:11:40 > 0:11:43where head tester Jon Griffin agreed to inspect them
0:11:43 > 0:11:47to see if they were actually cheese or if they were fakes.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49They're saying it's with a cheese topping -
0:11:49 > 0:11:52I would expect that to be a dairy cheese topping.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55After testing for the presence of dairy fat in the cheese,
0:11:55 > 0:11:58Jon found that one in five was fake.
0:11:58 > 0:12:02They contained cheese analogue rather than dairy cheese.
0:12:02 > 0:12:04They had ingredients which where fake.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07In this case, it was cheese being described as cheese,
0:12:07 > 0:12:09and it isn't actually cheese at all.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11It's a significant percentage,
0:12:11 > 0:12:13and you have only got to extrapolate that
0:12:13 > 0:12:15across the number of products being sold out there in the UK,
0:12:15 > 0:12:19you can actually mount up and see how big a problem it could well be.
0:12:20 > 0:12:22That's exactly what we did.
0:12:22 > 0:12:26And, if my basic maths is correct, that means we could be consuming
0:12:26 > 0:12:30around 100 million fake cheese pizzas every year.
0:12:30 > 0:12:31It is concerning.
0:12:31 > 0:12:35I personally think that food fraud is certainly on the increase.
0:12:35 > 0:12:37Everybody has to eat,
0:12:37 > 0:12:39and the cost of food is getting higher.
0:12:39 > 0:12:43So there is a way of companies and individuals
0:12:43 > 0:12:45making quick profit out of this,
0:12:45 > 0:12:48and the person who suffers, obviously, is the consumer.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53We're not the only ones to be a bit suspicious about cheese.
0:12:53 > 0:12:56Lancashire Trading Standards recently carried out tests
0:12:56 > 0:12:58on 20 pizzas.
0:12:58 > 0:13:03They revealed a staggering 19 out of 20 contained fake cheese.
0:13:06 > 0:13:09Jon fears that the use of fake cheese is growing,
0:13:09 > 0:13:13and it might not just be pizza that's falling foul of the fakers.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15If we looked wider and looked at different products,
0:13:15 > 0:13:17you could actually find the same fake cheese
0:13:17 > 0:13:19on other and in other foods.
0:13:19 > 0:13:21To me, it's an authenticity issue,
0:13:21 > 0:13:24so the consumer is just not getting what they're paying for.
0:13:30 > 0:13:34Earlier we saw the devastating effects tampering with energy meters
0:13:34 > 0:13:36can have on innocent people.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38I thought, "Is it a bomb?
0:13:38 > 0:13:41"Has someone set a bomb off?"
0:13:41 > 0:13:43And we followed British Gas as they discovered
0:13:43 > 0:13:46businesses faking their meter readings.
0:13:46 > 0:13:48They've damaged the integrity of the meter,
0:13:48 > 0:13:50so there is the potential for a gas leak.
0:13:50 > 0:13:55In Leicester, British Gas Revenue Protection boss, Mark Andrews,
0:13:55 > 0:13:59knows all the tricks the criminals use to fake their meter readings.
0:14:01 > 0:14:04There are a number of ways that people can choose to tamper
0:14:04 > 0:14:07with their meters in order to create a fake meter reading
0:14:07 > 0:14:10and generate a fake bill. One of the ways
0:14:10 > 0:14:14is to tamper with the index reading itself.
0:14:14 > 0:14:17The index is the box with the dials on it,
0:14:17 > 0:14:19which registers how much gas you're using.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21What the criminals have started doing
0:14:21 > 0:14:24is tampering with the mechanism inside the box
0:14:24 > 0:14:26to reduce the amount of gas use it clocks.
0:14:28 > 0:14:31If Mark simulates gas being passed through the meter,
0:14:31 > 0:14:34in this case with air, you can see the tamper in action.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37What's happening is the gas is going through the meter,
0:14:37 > 0:14:39it's not all being recorded.
0:14:39 > 0:14:43The customer's happy, they're creating that fake meter reading
0:14:43 > 0:14:46which is giving them a fake bill, at the end of the day.
0:14:46 > 0:14:50But in order to clock the meter, you need to remove the blue seal,
0:14:50 > 0:14:53which is like holding up a huge sign saying,
0:14:53 > 0:14:55"I've tampered with my meter."
0:14:55 > 0:14:58So the fakers have a crafty trick to cover up their tracks.
0:14:59 > 0:15:04To hide the damage that they've done to the seal,
0:15:04 > 0:15:06customers are using these fake seals
0:15:06 > 0:15:09which they're able to buy from the internet,
0:15:09 > 0:15:13and just putting them in place afterwards to look as new.
0:15:15 > 0:15:17These criminals may be saving a few pounds,
0:15:17 > 0:15:20but tampering with your gas meter is not only illegal,
0:15:20 > 0:15:23it's highly unsafe.
0:15:23 > 0:15:26Unfortunately, Mark's seeing more and more fake meter readings
0:15:26 > 0:15:29created by a highly dangerous method
0:15:29 > 0:15:32that involves tampering with the gas supply pipes.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35And what's happened here is the customer has decided
0:15:35 > 0:15:38to use a bicycle inner tube to bridge...
0:15:38 > 0:15:41the position where the meter would be,
0:15:41 > 0:15:44and this would go to the internal appliances at the property.
0:15:44 > 0:15:47Whoever's done this is really riding his luck,
0:15:47 > 0:15:49replacing the meter pipe for the inner tube
0:15:49 > 0:15:53and then rotating the two over the course of the year.
0:15:53 > 0:15:55And what happens then, of course,
0:15:55 > 0:15:57is that they've created this fake meter reading
0:15:57 > 0:16:00by the fact that most of the gas they've used
0:16:00 > 0:16:01during that quarterly read period
0:16:01 > 0:16:05has gone through the bypass rather than the meter.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07In terms of danger, these are lethal,
0:16:07 > 0:16:11and an explosion is a likely consequence of this type of tamper.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14Sadly, it's not just the people faking their meter readings
0:16:14 > 0:16:17that are cashing in on this market.
0:16:17 > 0:16:21We recently found this bypass on an online auction site,
0:16:21 > 0:16:24advertised as "dreaming of free gas".
0:16:27 > 0:16:31We looked on the internet to find out just how big the business is
0:16:31 > 0:16:34of selling parts needed to fake your meter reading.
0:16:36 > 0:16:39A couple of clicks later, we found an online auction site
0:16:39 > 0:16:42littered with an array of different fake seals
0:16:42 > 0:16:47going for around £10 each, as well as entire meters up for sale.
0:16:47 > 0:16:50These are illegal to fit yourself,
0:16:50 > 0:16:52but they come wound back to zero -
0:16:52 > 0:16:55a very primitive way of faking your meter reading.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00What was more shocking was that when we searched for
0:17:00 > 0:17:03"how to fake your gas meter guides",
0:17:03 > 0:17:06we were falling over web pages and videos
0:17:06 > 0:17:08giving instructions on how to do it,
0:17:08 > 0:17:12including this video illustrating the wind back method
0:17:12 > 0:17:15to fake your meter using a domestic vacuum cleaner.
0:17:17 > 0:17:21But it's not just those that are having their meter readings faked
0:17:21 > 0:17:24who are cashing in. Criminals are making money
0:17:24 > 0:17:27by offering to come and tamper with gas meters for a fee.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30These people do make a business out of doing it, until, of course,
0:17:30 > 0:17:33we track them down and involve the police,
0:17:33 > 0:17:36and then that business, hopefully, is soon terminated.
0:17:36 > 0:17:40Some of the fraudsters claim to fake as many as 15 meters a day,
0:17:40 > 0:17:44charging between £10 and £500 a time.
0:17:44 > 0:17:48Some have gone as far as to start advertising their services
0:17:48 > 0:17:51in newspapers, offering to come and fix your gas meter
0:17:51 > 0:17:54and lower the bills, like this one Mark found
0:17:54 > 0:17:59in a Mandarin language newspaper distributed in the UK.
0:17:59 > 0:18:04Some of the translations from these read as follows:
0:18:04 > 0:18:07"Get the super energy saving device to control the meter.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10"One-off installation. Lifelong benefit.
0:18:10 > 0:18:15"Conquers expensive British bills. 100% safe and reliable."
0:18:15 > 0:18:17It doesn't stop with gas.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21Later, we find out the fakery's gone dual fuel,
0:18:21 > 0:18:24as we go on the road with Western Power
0:18:24 > 0:18:27to uncover highly dangerous electricity meters.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31They melt, they catch fire - you could be asleep at night
0:18:31 > 0:18:34and this could be happening to your meter if you're tampering.
0:18:39 > 0:18:43Movie posters. When the film has moved on from your local cinema,
0:18:43 > 0:18:48most will be forgotten, but for a memorable or successful film,
0:18:48 > 0:18:51the original poster can become valuable, like these -
0:18:51 > 0:18:55Star Wars and Pulp Fiction, both worth thousands.
0:18:55 > 0:19:00Or they would be if they were real. They're both fakes.
0:19:00 > 0:19:02It takes an expert to tell the difference,
0:19:02 > 0:19:05and that's why posters like these
0:19:05 > 0:19:07are fooling collectors across the country.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12From box office blockbusters to budget B-movies,
0:19:12 > 0:19:16the market for original vintage movie posters in Britain is huge.
0:19:16 > 0:19:20And in West London, poster dealer Liza Tesei
0:19:20 > 0:19:22knows exactly why they're in demand.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25An original movie poster is a tangible reminder
0:19:25 > 0:19:27of our favourite film.
0:19:27 > 0:19:30It's like you're owning an actual piece of history.
0:19:30 > 0:19:32And they come at a price.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35Rare posters like this Audrey Hepburn classic,
0:19:35 > 0:19:39Breakfast At Tiffany's, will go for around £25,000.
0:19:39 > 0:19:43In fact, it's not unheard of for some early cinema classics
0:19:43 > 0:19:48from the 1920s to fetch over £400,000.
0:19:51 > 0:19:55But this lucrative market has been hijacked by the fakers,
0:19:55 > 0:19:57with swarms of cheap modern reprints
0:19:57 > 0:20:00being sold as if they're original posters.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04Poster collector turned dealer Mark Hochman
0:20:04 > 0:20:08has been buying vintage movie posters for over 20 years,
0:20:08 > 0:20:11and has first-hand experience of being duped by a fake.
0:20:13 > 0:20:17Mark was in the market for a highly sought-after original
0:20:17 > 0:20:21of the 1990s cult classic, Pulp Fiction.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25This particular poster in its original form is extremely rare.
0:20:26 > 0:20:30Probably only 100 to 150 originals are now known to exist.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34Mark thought he'd bagged himself a bargain
0:20:34 > 0:20:37when he struck a deal with an online seller for the poster,
0:20:37 > 0:20:40which retails at around £1,000.
0:20:42 > 0:20:44When I bought this poster, I genuinely believed
0:20:44 > 0:20:46I was buying an original poster.
0:20:46 > 0:20:50The photographs that I was sent were those of an original poster.
0:20:50 > 0:20:55So, having checked out the picture, Mark parted with his money.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58When the poster arrived, he was less than impressed.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01It just didn't feel right. It didn't look right.
0:21:01 > 0:21:03I immediately knew, as soon as this was unwrapped
0:21:03 > 0:21:06and came out of the tube, that this was fake.
0:21:06 > 0:21:08Mark was out of pocket, and his expert eye
0:21:08 > 0:21:12was quick to spot the subtle mistakes that make it a fake.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17Firstly, when it comes to fake movie posters, size does matter.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22This poster, although it is minor,
0:21:22 > 0:21:26actually comes in at just under 27 inches.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29The original is just over.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31And that's not the only mistake.
0:21:31 > 0:21:33The film may have been a huge hit,
0:21:33 > 0:21:36but the print quality on this fake isn't going to win any Oscars.
0:21:36 > 0:21:39All of these fakes have the white speckle.
0:21:40 > 0:21:44It's got a foggy look to it. Generally out of focus.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47It's just... It's not right.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50Mark's isn't an isolated case.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54Poster dealer Liza has seen her fair share of fakes,
0:21:54 > 0:21:57and knows just how convincing they can be.
0:21:58 > 0:22:02Unfortunately, many of these fakes were done so well that in fact
0:22:02 > 0:22:07many auction houses and top poster dealers have been fooled.
0:22:07 > 0:22:10One of the most widely faked posters in existence
0:22:10 > 0:22:12is the original Star Wars poster,
0:22:12 > 0:22:16known in the business as the Star Wars Style C.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19Star Wars was extremely popular,
0:22:19 > 0:22:23and therefore would have been very profitable to fake.
0:22:23 > 0:22:26At the time when they would have printed these fakes,
0:22:26 > 0:22:29they would have printed, you know, thousands.
0:22:29 > 0:22:31Perhaps tens of thousands.
0:22:31 > 0:22:34So it's likely thousands of collectors out there
0:22:34 > 0:22:38have unknowingly purchased these fakes.
0:22:38 > 0:22:40But, unlike the fake poster Mark bought,
0:22:40 > 0:22:44this one is the exact same size as the original,
0:22:44 > 0:22:48which could fetch around £5,000 at auction.
0:22:48 > 0:22:52However, there's one subtle giveaway.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55On the fake, the easiest giveaway
0:22:55 > 0:22:59is this hairline here on Princess Leia's back.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02That's the immediate giveaway for the fake,
0:23:02 > 0:23:04as opposed to on the original.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06There are hundreds, if not thousands,
0:23:06 > 0:23:08of collectors and movie buffs out there
0:23:08 > 0:23:11getting their fingers burnt by these fakes.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14Most don't even realise they've bought a fake
0:23:14 > 0:23:16until they come to sell it.
0:23:16 > 0:23:18When they bring it in to us to resell
0:23:18 > 0:23:20and we tell them of that news,
0:23:20 > 0:23:23of course they're extremely disappointed.
0:23:23 > 0:23:25And one of these fakes is this lobby card.
0:23:25 > 0:23:29A lobby card is a smaller poster designed for cinema lobbies,
0:23:29 > 0:23:33and it purports to be from the 1983 hit Scarface.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36So it's over 30 years old.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40I took a look at his lobby card, and I said,
0:23:40 > 0:23:44"Sir, you know, just so you know, this is actually not an original."
0:23:44 > 0:23:46And of course he was horrified.
0:23:46 > 0:23:50To the untrained eye, the fakes and the originals look the same.
0:23:50 > 0:23:54But if you know what you're looking for, there's always a telltale sign.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57It's quite obvious that you can tell this one is a fake.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00This is what we call pretty much minty white on the back.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03This is a giveaway that these are not originals.
0:24:04 > 0:24:06So the paper looks brand-new -
0:24:06 > 0:24:10far too bright for something that's supposed to be 30 years old.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13It's not really worth anything, maybe £5 or £10,
0:24:13 > 0:24:15and they've spent hundreds of pounds on acquiring it.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18So it's going to be very disappointing for someone
0:24:18 > 0:24:21who's spent their hard-earned money on a fake.
0:24:21 > 0:24:25It's not an experience Mark would like to repeat.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28It was an expensive mistake, but one that I've learned from,
0:24:28 > 0:24:32and I do not buy that many posters from online sellers now.
0:24:32 > 0:24:35It is... It's a minefield.
0:24:42 > 0:24:44Earlier, we saw just how dangerous
0:24:44 > 0:24:47the practice of faking gas meter readings can be.
0:24:47 > 0:24:52An explosion is a likely consequence of this type of tamper.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55It's not just gas meter readings that are being faked.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57Electricity readings are too.
0:24:57 > 0:25:01It's 9am, again somewhere in the Midlands.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06Western Power Enforcement Officers Gav and Steve
0:25:06 > 0:25:10are responsible for making sure the electricity network is safe.
0:25:11 > 0:25:14They've just received an emergency call-out -
0:25:14 > 0:25:17a tip-off from a member of the public saying that a property
0:25:17 > 0:25:21on their patch may have had its electricity meter interfered with.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25Arriving at the property, they gain access to the meter cupboard,
0:25:25 > 0:25:27and the first signs aren't good.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32The actual meter itself, security seals are missing,
0:25:32 > 0:25:33and then if you look underneath,
0:25:33 > 0:25:37the outgoing live tail, they've dropped it down.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40There's copper showing on it with marks where,
0:25:40 > 0:25:42at some stage, they've had a bypass on it.
0:25:42 > 0:25:46So they probably would have had a wire between the top of the fuse
0:25:46 > 0:25:50to the outgoing tail there to get free electric.
0:25:51 > 0:25:54Steve knows that putting a bridging wire between the supply
0:25:54 > 0:25:59and the meter is one of the most common tampering methods used.
0:25:59 > 0:26:01It means it might only register
0:26:01 > 0:26:05a fraction of the electricity that's being supplied.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08And as Gav safely removes the meter from the wall,
0:26:08 > 0:26:11the risks of the suspected tamper are clear to see.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16With the copper exposed, if anybody touched that there,
0:26:16 > 0:26:19they'd immediately get an electric shock.
0:26:20 > 0:26:22This is very serious indeed.
0:26:22 > 0:26:24Anyone could have got access to the live wires
0:26:24 > 0:26:26in this unsecured cupboard.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30But the man who let them into the property is adamant
0:26:30 > 0:26:32that there's been no tampering,
0:26:32 > 0:26:35and claims he put money on the meter only that morning.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38What's the point in wiring it up if there's credits on it?
0:26:38 > 0:26:40We've been paying for the meter.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43Although there is credit on it now, that meter has been interfered with.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45And we put another £3 on this morning.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48£3 and then another £10.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51You're not listening. At the end of the day, that meter has been interfered with.
0:26:51 > 0:26:55We will come back again within the next six months,
0:26:55 > 0:26:58and if it's been done again, you'll be cut off.
0:26:58 > 0:27:02It's Gav and Steve's job to make the supply safe.
0:27:03 > 0:27:05I'm just replacing the meter.
0:27:07 > 0:27:08Removing the, um...
0:27:11 > 0:27:13..the parts of the tails that have been bypassed.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19So as we can preserve any evidence if needs be.
0:27:19 > 0:27:21It's now up to the supplier to determine
0:27:21 > 0:27:24whether any electricity's been supplied to the house
0:27:24 > 0:27:27but not paid for. The man at the address denies any wrongdoing.
0:27:27 > 0:27:30The police will be informed about what they've found here,
0:27:30 > 0:27:33and may decide to investigate further.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35We can go to sleep tonight, rest assured
0:27:35 > 0:27:37that this house is not going to set on fire
0:27:37 > 0:27:40and there'll be no danger of any children getting an electric shock.
0:27:40 > 0:27:43They've got to this one in the nick of time,
0:27:43 > 0:27:45but Mark Andrews has seen what happens
0:27:45 > 0:27:49when people faking their meter readings are not so fortunate.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51These are all meters that we've found recently.
0:27:51 > 0:27:53The bypass still in place,
0:27:53 > 0:27:56and because the loading of these cables is not sufficient
0:27:56 > 0:27:59to take the current that's going through them,
0:27:59 > 0:28:01they melt, they catch fire.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05You could be asleep at night
0:28:05 > 0:28:08and this could be happening to your meter if you're tampering.
0:28:13 > 0:28:16That's all from Fake Britain. Goodbye.