Episode 15 Fake Britain


Episode 15

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Transcript


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Welcome to a world where nothing is quite as it seems.

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Welcome to Fake Britain.

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Police! Move out the way!

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-Get down! Get down!

-Get on the floor now.

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Put your hands behind your back now.

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Here at the Fake Britain house, things might look familiar,

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but don't be taken in

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because this is a house that's filled with fakes.

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In this series, I'll be revealing the counterfeits, copies and cons

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that are flooding the market, fooling the public,

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making money for the criminals and maybe even putting you in danger.

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We'll be investigating those fraudsters

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who are cashing in by selling us something that isn't real,

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and we'll be showing you how to avoid falling for a fake.

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Today, on Fake Britain,

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the fake bike helmets that won't keep you safe.

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This helmet could not have failed in a worse way.

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The counterfeit pesticides heading for UK farms.

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We actually don't know what's inside them.

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They might pose a health risk, they might be carcinogenic.

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The dodgy guitars that rock the music industry.

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I'd been duped.

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Clearly the guitar was a fake.

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And the fake supermarket saving stamps

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that won't help you out on a rainy day.

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There is £1,000 on each one of these.

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There's nothing obvious on it that would say they're fake.

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Wearing a helmet

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when you're riding a bicycle might seem like good common sense.

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In some countries, such as Australia, it's now also the law,

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you have to wear one.

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A helmet might save your life in a crash.

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But this bike helmet is fake,

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it's a counterfeit of this one.

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It's dangerous and part of a growing industry

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where the fakers are trying to make money out of the success of cycling.

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With 19,000 cyclists injured or killed every year,

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wearing protective headgear is crucial for most riders.

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The Department Of Transport recently claimed bike helmets

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could prevent up to 16% of the fatalities on Britain's roads.

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But it seems the fakers are now riding on the back of the trend too.

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More worryingly, cyclists are buying counterfeit headgear

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thinking it offers protection when it may not...

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as Andrew McCreery discovered

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when he found a bike helmet, supposedly made by Giro, online.

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It was a product which I had already had for myself personally.

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Seemed to be of good quality, seemed good value for money

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and it was just a brand

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which we had recognised as widely used in the cycling world,

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so we presumed that would probably be the safest bet.

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Andrew and his wife, Joanne,

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were training for a 130-mile cycle ride around Northern Ireland

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to raise money for charity, so they needed the right equipment.

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And this event was very personal for them.

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Tragically, in September 2012, we had a son who was stillborn.

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Zach.

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He died just a few days before his due date

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and we wanted to do a cycle ride in his memory.

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The Giro helmet they'd found for this important bike ride

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was being sold by a third-party seller on Amazon for £35.

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We were saving £10-£15 in comparison to the retail stores,

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so we decided, well, let's give that a go.

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That's £10 extra for the charity.

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Two weeks went by and the helmet hadn't arrived.

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When Andrew chased the Amazon seller,

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he was disturbed by what he discovered.

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We realised that, although it was a UK seller,

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it was a China dispatch,

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and we were informed that, in the small print,

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that it could be 3-4 weeks before we would expect delivery.

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So I suppose alarm bells started to ring at this stage.

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But, when the helmet arrived, Andrew had more reason to worry.

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The initial concern was the weight whenever we took the helmet

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out of the box that it seemed to be much lighter than other Giro helmets.

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It was seen to be a really light-foam quality

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with some type of cheap plastic veneer over the top of it

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which really wasn't meeting the edges in the correct places.

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We were absolutely adamant that this just shouldn't be used at all,

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that the only place this helmet was really fit to go was to the bin.

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And that's where he put it.

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The manufacturer Giro confirmed to Andrew that it was a fake

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and, eventually, he got his money back.

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Amazon told us -

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They also said -

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Worryingly, though, the counterfeits are still out there.

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Fake Britain managed to buy another suspected fake Giro helmet

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very similar to the one Andrew bought

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from a totally different website.

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We took our suspected fake to INSPEC in Manchester.

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One of the UK's leading test houses for headgear,

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they've agreed to compare it to the original, genuine Giro product

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to see if the fake would pass European safety standards.

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If we compare the products, looking at the original,

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we have one design for the retention system adjustment

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and we have a very different design on the suspected fake.

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Similarly, for the side buckles, we have one design on the original

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and a different design on the suspected fake.

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At this point, that doesn't enable us to draw any conclusions

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but it's something that obviously the end user can look for

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if they're comparing the product.

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Andrew and his team will run tests to check that the helmets

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comply with the legally-required European standard

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for bicycle headgear, EN 1078.

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To begin with, the genuine product

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will be put through its paces in a series of real-life scenarios.

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Firstly, they'll measure its performance

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when dropped onto this anvil shaped like a kerbstone.

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The test simulates a head, in this case, hitting the kerbstone.

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The standard for the shock absorption test includes

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a maximum permitted acceleration of 250g.

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So for each of the impacts that we're going to perform,

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we'll be looking to make sure that the helmet

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gives a value which is lower than that maximum.

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OK, so let's see how the genuine Giro performs.

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CLATTERING

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And the result that we've got is 82.3g,

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which is well below the 250g limit specified by the standard.

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Next up, how will the genuine product cope

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when hitting a flat, road-like surface?

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So we've got a result of 187.3g

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which is still well below the limit of 250g.

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That's good performance.

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So that's a pass, as expected, for our genuine Giro helmet.

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Has the suspected fake got any chance of matching it?

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First up, it's the kerbstone test.

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That's a terrible result.

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As you can see from the helmet, it's actually split in two.

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The value that we've recorded is 1209.8g,

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many times the maximum permitted by the standard.

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That's nearly five times over the golden 250g safety limit.

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And, from Andrew, the news just gets worse.

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Unfortunately that's also exceeded the maximum that we can record

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with our equipment, so the value could even be higher than that,

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which is terrible.

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I think we can be fairly confident that it is absolutely a fake and,

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in practice, that would result in a catastrophic injury for the wearer.

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The fake's failed so badly that it can't continue.

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Normally we would be able to perform a second impact.

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Clearly, in this case, we can't do that.

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The lab's test rig is also damaged.

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You can actually see where the kerbstone

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has hit straight onto the headform

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and put an indentation in the test headform.

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If that were somebody's skull, then that would not be very nice.

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Should you have an accident, there would be

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potentially very, very serious consequences.

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So we took our results

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to one of Britain's leading brain injury centres,

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the National Hospital For Neurology And Neurosurgery in London.

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What does neurosurgeon Lewis Thorne

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think of the performance of the fake helmet?

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This has fractured at the side.

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You can just see that the ear would be in this space here,

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and where this comes away here

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would expose the side of the head

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which is actually the thinnest part of the skull

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and most susceptible to fracture.

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Lying underneath that area is one of the main arteries

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beneath the bone,

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and if that's damaged with a fracture of the skull,

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that'll cause high-pressure bleeding over the surface of the brain,

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rapidly putting pressure on the brain,

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and it's the kind of thing that,

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if it doesn't get urgent surgical treatment, is undoubtedly fatal.

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This helmet could not have failed in a worse way.

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And Lewis is shocked by the discovery of fake bike helmets

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like this on the market.

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Brain injuries are devastating.

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They are the leading cause of death in young adults

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and, as far as I'm concerned, helmets save lives.

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And if you've got a helmet like this,

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that's not going to save your life.

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To find that people are prepared to put other people's lives at risk

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for the sake of a small profit is totally reprehensible.

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Saving stamps have been around for years in the UK.

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As long ago as 1880, penny and postage stamps

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were bought by people for their Post Office savings accounts,

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and saving stamps are still sold in high-street stores and supermarkets.

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Thousands of people collect them.

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The problem is the fakers have gone into the saving stamps business too.

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In these times of austerity, some supermarkets have reported

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a rise of up to 40% in people buying into their saving stamp schemes.

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When times are hard, people like to use them

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to save for their weekly food shop

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or for Christmas presents for the kids.

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Money is tight for everyone, so

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if you can prepare yourself enough by using saving stamps, it helps.

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When you've got a young family, it's easier to put money away each week.

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The problem is that the fakers want a piece of the market too,

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as Nottinghamshire Police are about to find out.

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They're on the trail of counterfeit saver stamps

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from one of Britain's biggest supermarket chains - Morrisons.

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We're en route to Coventry.

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The Border Agency

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have intercepted a package of stamps to a value of £25,000.

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Detective Constable Glenn Finbow

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suspects organised crime could be behind this hoard.

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I doubt this is a one-man operation or a one-person operation.

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One person can't go into a superstore

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and cash in £25,000 worth of stamps in one hit.

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It's got to be, potentially, nationwide.

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It seems the fakers are targeting saving stamps

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because they can be used like cash.

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Unwitting shoppers have been duped into buying them too.

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One woman was recently arrested for trying to use fakes in Tesco.

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Back at Coventry postal hub,

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Nottinghamshire Police have taken delivery

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of £25,000 worth of saving stamps.

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So what do they make of them?

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We've seized this one package which has obviously...

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It's got Chinese writing on it.

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It's come from China to an address in Nottinghamshire.

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It seems the fakers are using cheap Chinese counterfeiters

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to do their dirty work and avoid UK law.

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But the arrival of this seemingly-innocuous parcel

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from the Far East

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raised suspicions at customs.

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Border Force picked this up initially

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because it is such a small package for such a large supermarket chain

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and it's not actually going to any Morrisons store,

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it's going to the home address of someone else in Nottingham.

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So it's back to base for Glenn and his colleagues

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with their counterfeit hoard.

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Now they're out of the package, they can take a closer look

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alongside some genuine Morrisons saving stamps.

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These are forgeries, these are the originals.

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-I'll tell you what, it's not bad, is it?

-It's not bad at all.

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-It's very good.

-That is a pretty good...

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-Yeah, I wouldn't be able to tell.

-Fake.

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So, Glenn and his colleagues are surprised by their quality.

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But, side-by-side, next to the genuine saving stamps,

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they have spotted some differences.

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-That's a darker yellow.

-Yes.

-A more golden colour.

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The genuine ones are slightly brighter yellow

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and the Morrisons logo behind it it's quite light on these

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and not quite as light on the fakes.

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And it's the same size, same perforation,

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the font sizes are the same.

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If someone gave me one of those, I would have no clue.

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-There's nothing obvious on it that would say they're fake.

-No.

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You could probably buy several flatscreen TVs

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with each of these small bundles.

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There's £1,000 on each one of these.

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They're all sequential numbering,

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starting at 3201, 3202, all the way through.

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And it ends in 4200.

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There's 1,000 numbers in this bundle.

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£1,000 worth of stamps.

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And if Border Force hadn't intercepted this small package,

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Morrisons would have paid the price.

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If these went out into the open market

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and back into Morrisons, Morrisons would be £25,000 down.

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It turns out these aren't the only fakes that have been found.

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Morrisons say that -

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They advise all customers that -

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But in the meantime, Glenn and his fellow officers

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will follow up the leads they have on the packaging.

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We've obtained a few more intelligence details

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off of the actual box itself.

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A couple of names, couple of addresses.

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We'll be doing some intelligence-led police work

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and see what avenue they lead us down.

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The police investigation is ongoing.

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Earlier we saw how fake bike helmets on the market

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are putting lives in danger.

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If you've got a helmet like this, that's not going to save your life.

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Well, Fake Britain has been alerted to another dodgy batch of helmets.

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This time heading for real bikers - motorcyclists.

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26 were recently seized by Trading Standards.

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Today they've brought them

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to the British Standards Institution, or BSI,

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to see if they comply with European or British safety standards,

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as all motorcycle headgear must do under UK law.

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What we want to find out is whether these are safe or not,

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so BSI are carrying out some tests for us on the safety of the helmets

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and also on the safety of the visors themselves.

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The visor suggests it complies with European standards

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but lab manager Mark Mayo suspects this is a fake claim.

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The visor says that it's homologated to E22-05

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but it is not the correct terminology for that standard.

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So the makers can't even quote the correct standard,

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which should read ECE 22.05.

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Nevertheless, the BSI is going to see

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if the claim made on this helmet is fake

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with a series of tests on the visor.

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The test we're going to show you now is the abrasion test.

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It's to simulate whether a visor is scratch...

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how scratch resistant it is and whether or not,

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over a period of time,

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the visor will still be able to be viewed through.

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As Trading Standards watch on, a square section is removed.

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This will now be subjected to the kind of wear and tear

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a motorcycle visor could get during its lifetime.

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We're going to drop sand on it which simulates particles

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hitting the visor when it's actually in use.

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We'll then see how much effect that has

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on the transparency of the visor.

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After 5kg of falling sand,

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the sample is taken to another lab for a diffusion test.

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Here, a laser is aimed at the visor to measure the amount of light

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that gets through after the abrasion.

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The results were five times the limit, so that's a definite fail.

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What this means is that by the time the visor is coming towards

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the end of its life,

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the motorcyclist won't even be able to see through it properly

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and it is not... Basically not fit for purpose.

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So the claim that the visor meets the European standard is a fake.

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What do Trading Standards make of these results?

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Well, I'm really disappointed. The helmet clearly doesn't perform.

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It doesn't look as though it's going to perform as it should

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which presents a worry for the wearer.

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You're not going to not have such good visibility,

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you may not necessarily realise that

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but a bit of light perhaps through a tree or off headlights

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can really cause some problems,

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so it really does concern me, these results.

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Next, the team from the BSI prepare a penetration test.

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This simulates how well the motorcycle visor

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can withstand the impact of a stone or other flying debris.

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We'll drop a mass from one metre,

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we hit the punch and that will penetrate the visor

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and depending on how far it goes through,

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determines whether it's a pass or a fail.

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There is a difference of 6mm penetration into the visor

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and the limit is 5mm, so this is a failure.

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So, on a second count,

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the claim that this visor meets European standards

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is proven to be a fake.

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For the final, most critical test,

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the BSI team is going to measure how well the helmet itself

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will protect the rider in the event of a crash.

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We're doing the impact on the helmet in three or four different places.

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This will simulate in a real-life accident

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someone coming off a motorbike and hitting in different orientations

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as part of the accident.

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This is one of the impact tests it has to pass

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to meet the European standard.

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So will it be third time lucky?

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The impact energy is 975g which is a massive impact.

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It's over three times the limit, it's actually off the scale.

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That's brain injury, definitely.

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So this helmet's catastrophically failed the European standards.

0:21:290:21:34

And there's worse news for the visor.

0:21:340:21:37

The visor's cracked in half but could quite easily have shattered

0:21:370:21:41

into more pieces, which could have caused serious eye injuries.

0:21:410:21:45

And now, the next impact test.

0:21:470:21:50

Wow.

0:22:010:22:03

That helmet has split...

0:22:030:22:05

..completely in half now.

0:22:060:22:07

It's a very bad result and certainly wouldn't meet

0:22:090:22:12

any of the requirements that we've ever tested to.

0:22:120:22:15

Usually at this point, the BSI would continue with further tests

0:22:160:22:20

but this failure is clearly in no fit state to carry on.

0:22:200:22:24

Trading Standards have been warning bikers about the dangers

0:22:240:22:27

of buying helmets that don't meet legal safety standards.

0:22:270:22:31

Their investigation continues.

0:22:320:22:33

I would be concerned for anyone who is going to be wearing this helmet.

0:22:350:22:38

The worst thing is they think they're protecting themselves

0:22:380:22:41

by wearing a helmet

0:22:410:22:42

and it's barely going to provide any protection whatsoever.

0:22:420:22:46

Pesticides are often used to help grow the food we eat.

0:22:510:22:55

They're regulated and tested.

0:22:550:22:57

And the residues that remain on the food when we buy it are monitored.

0:22:570:23:01

But even then, it's a controversial subject.

0:23:010:23:04

So, it's been alarming for Fake Britain to discover

0:23:040:23:07

that potentially-dangerous fake pesticides are in circulation.

0:23:070:23:12

Experts tell us that the worldwide trade

0:23:120:23:14

in counterfeit and illegal pesticides

0:23:140:23:17

is said to be worth around a massive £4 billion,

0:23:170:23:21

and UK farms could be on the counterfeiters' hit list.

0:23:210:23:25

This is Felixstowe Port

0:23:290:23:30

where Border Force have made a shocking discovery of counterfeits.

0:23:300:23:34

Not the usual fake perfume or children's toys...

0:23:350:23:38

These are fake pesticides,

0:23:390:23:42

and they're potentially hazardous chemicals.

0:23:420:23:44

Well, the consignment originated in China

0:23:460:23:48

and it's been imported into the UK.

0:23:480:23:53

The products themselves are generally used in pesticides which would

0:23:530:23:58

typically be in something like this designed for agricultural use

0:23:580:24:02

rather than retail sale.

0:24:020:24:03

Acetamiprid is an insecticide and was developed in Japan.

0:24:050:24:09

The Japanese manufacturer has told Border Force that this

0:24:100:24:14

consignment must be counterfeit

0:24:140:24:17

because it's arrived from China, outside the usual supply chain.

0:24:170:24:21

The packaging is blank because it's probably going to be used

0:24:220:24:25

in some sort of further manufacturing or packaging process

0:24:250:24:29

somewhere in the UK.

0:24:290:24:30

But because it's counterfeit,

0:24:300:24:32

we don't know where that manufacturing will take place

0:24:320:24:35

or that repackaging or relabeling.

0:24:350:24:37

And then what will happen to it after that?

0:24:370:24:39

The genuine acetamiprid

0:24:420:24:44

is used to destroy aphids like blackfly and greenfly

0:24:440:24:48

which suck the sap from young plants and damage crops.

0:24:480:24:51

This insecticide is approved for use on fruit and vegetables

0:24:530:24:56

that we all buy, like apples, lettuce and potatoes.

0:24:560:25:00

Although acetamiprid is not widely used throughout

0:25:040:25:07

the UK's farming industry,

0:25:070:25:09

researchers at Harper Adams University in Gloucestershire

0:25:090:25:12

have been monitoring other fake pesticides

0:25:120:25:15

that have entered Europe from elsewhere.

0:25:150:25:18

Somewhere between 5% and 7% of the pesticides being used in the UK

0:25:190:25:24

are likely to be illegal and,

0:25:240:25:26

again, a proportion of those will be counterfeits.

0:25:260:25:29

Certainly, the manufacturers of these illicit products

0:25:310:25:34

are becoming smarter.

0:25:340:25:35

They are producing product that is increasingly more likely

0:25:350:25:39

to fool the authorities.

0:25:390:25:41

Like any counterfeit products,

0:25:430:25:45

the worry for experts like Chris Sambrook and Dr Richard Byrne

0:25:450:25:49

is not knowing what hazardous chemicals are contained

0:25:490:25:52

within the fakes.

0:25:520:25:53

A manufactured pesticide is gone through years of testing,

0:25:550:25:59

years of investment, it's regulated, it's...

0:25:590:26:02

We know how it behaves in the environment.

0:26:020:26:04

The real problem with these counterfeit pesticides

0:26:060:26:09

is that they might be carcinogenic.

0:26:090:26:11

They might accrue in the soil system, they might pollute watercourses,

0:26:120:26:15

they might pose a health risk to the operators.

0:26:150:26:18

Rural crime these days goes way beyond the theft of the odd tractor.

0:26:190:26:24

Organised criminals are behind the counterfeit pesticides

0:26:240:26:27

that are targeting the farming industry

0:26:270:26:29

and the food they produce for us.

0:26:290:26:30

There's a lot of resources involved in this.

0:26:320:26:34

You need premises, you need chemical equipment,

0:26:340:26:36

you need a chemist.

0:26:360:26:38

This is not something that you can make up from items

0:26:380:26:41

at your local DIY store, so this is a laboratory-based chemical process.

0:26:410:26:46

It's a very sophisticated and very high-level investment,

0:26:460:26:48

but it's one with high rewards.

0:26:480:26:50

The costs of fake pesticides affecting the food we eat

0:26:520:26:55

are potentially high for everyone.

0:26:550:26:58

There is a potential for these...

0:26:580:27:00

for the residue from these products which again are untested,

0:27:000:27:03

getting into the food chain

0:27:030:27:04

and having a long-term impact as a consequence of that.

0:27:040:27:08

If it's a fake product that's being used,

0:27:080:27:11

sprayed onto vegetables or fruit,

0:27:110:27:14

I think the risk there is likely to be somewhat greater,

0:27:140:27:17

simply because the residues have a greater potential

0:27:170:27:21

to get into the food chain because they won't have had time

0:27:210:27:23

to dissipate, and I think anything that's certainly sprayed onto

0:27:230:27:27

a fruit crop would be a worry.

0:27:270:27:30

For people like Robert Young, whose family has been farming food crops

0:27:330:27:37

for generations, that's the concern.

0:27:370:27:40

Even though he's never encountered fake pesticides,

0:27:410:27:44

news of attempts to bring them into the UK is a worry.

0:27:440:27:48

I think that's very disturbing.

0:27:500:27:51

All our crops are grown to farm assurance standards

0:27:510:27:55

for human consumption and we have to guarantee

0:27:550:27:58

that no adverse pesticides are used on them.

0:27:580:28:02

It could put something toxic in that would make it unsalable

0:28:020:28:07

and then the crop would be unmarketable,

0:28:070:28:10

so there's a huge financial risk.

0:28:100:28:13

And if you've got a fake pesticide,

0:28:130:28:16

then you don't know the ultimate consequences that will happen.

0:28:160:28:20

Pesticide usage in the UK

0:28:210:28:23

is one of the most highly regulated in the world.

0:28:230:28:27

All chemicals have to be tested

0:28:270:28:28

and approved by the Chemicals Regulation Directorate.

0:28:280:28:31

Many farmers like Robert use certified suppliers,

0:28:330:28:36

an adviser or agronomist to suggest which pesticides to use,

0:28:360:28:41

and he has to record when he sprays them.

0:28:410:28:44

But with companies allowed to source pesticides from elsewhere in Europe,

0:28:440:28:49

the danger is if the fakes get into the system

0:28:490:28:51

at a weaker point in the chain.

0:28:510:28:54

The biggest risk would be

0:28:540:28:56

if distributors got something unwittingly and passed it on

0:28:560:29:00

to the farmers, and I think that is the bit that...have to be cautious.

0:29:000:29:04

Europol estimate that up to 25% of pesticides

0:29:070:29:11

in some European countries have been sourced illegally.

0:29:110:29:14

Organisations including the National Farmers Union

0:29:180:29:21

have set up the 'Watch Out!' campaign

0:29:210:29:23

to help farmers spot the counterfeits.

0:29:230:29:25

The industry take the use of pesticides extremely seriously.

0:29:270:29:31

Consumer confidence is absolutely paramount to our industry.

0:29:310:29:35

We've seen that there's a problem over in Europe

0:29:350:29:37

but we want to make sure it doesn't become one here.

0:29:370:29:39

Back at the port of Felixstowe,

0:29:410:29:43

for these fake pesticides, there's only one destination.

0:29:430:29:47

The safest thing for us to do is to just destroy them

0:29:470:29:50

and make sure they're out of harm's way for good.

0:29:500:29:54

Without the Border Force,

0:29:560:29:57

these could have been heading to a field near you.

0:29:570:30:00

Vintage guitars can be highly collectable and very valuable.

0:30:160:30:19

This 1964 Fender Stratocaster is worth £16,000.

0:30:190:30:25

That's cos it's 50 years old, and the Stratocaster

0:30:250:30:27

is the instrument of choice for nearly every famous rock star

0:30:270:30:31

we've ever heard of.

0:30:310:30:32

If a rock legend had owned this one, it would be worth £116,000.

0:30:320:30:37

The problem is telling the real from the fake

0:30:370:30:40

in the world of vintage guitars, it's not easy.

0:30:400:30:43

I mean, your guitar could be a Clapton but, then again,

0:30:430:30:47

it could just be clapped out.

0:30:470:30:49

Not only do they look incredibly cool,

0:30:590:31:02

electric guitars from the '60s that legends like the Voodoo Child

0:31:020:31:06

Jimi Hendrix played are now valuable as antiques or even works of art.

0:31:060:31:10

One of Hendrix's sold recently for

0:31:140:31:16

a quarter of a million pounds at auction.

0:31:160:31:19

But now the fakers have worked this out

0:31:220:31:24

and they know there are profits to be made

0:31:240:31:26

in the vintage guitar market.

0:31:260:31:27

As dealer David Pym discovered.

0:31:290:31:32

When he found a '64 Stratocaster on sale online for £8,000.

0:31:320:31:38

I just thought it looked very tempting being a 1964 Stratocaster.

0:31:390:31:44

It did have quite a lot of dings and dongs on the body

0:31:470:31:50

but that doesn't really matter with some guitars.

0:31:500:31:53

So it looked like a good item for me to purchase

0:31:540:31:57

to marry into my existing stock of Stratocasters.

0:31:570:32:01

The '64 Fender was being sold by a company with stores

0:32:030:32:06

across the UK called Music Ground.

0:32:060:32:09

Its owners, father and son duo, Rick and Justin Harrison

0:32:100:32:14

had built up a successful multi-million-pound guitar empire

0:32:140:32:17

from their base in Yorkshire.

0:32:170:32:19

They'd rubbed shoulders with rock legends like Bryan Adams.

0:32:200:32:24

David phoned Justin Harrison

0:32:250:32:27

to find out more about the Fender he had up for sale.

0:32:270:32:30

He said it was a very good, honest guitar,

0:32:320:32:34

so I decided to go for it because it seemed like a good buy.

0:32:340:32:40

But when the guitar arrived,

0:32:430:32:45

it didn't quite hit the right chord with its new owner.

0:32:450:32:47

I wasn't really happy with it.

0:32:480:32:50

It felt wrong to me in terms of the neck.

0:32:510:32:53

The neck didn't suit the neck pocket correctly.

0:32:530:32:56

David suspected that the neck on his vintage Fender

0:32:580:33:01

was not an original part.

0:33:010:33:03

It turned out his guitar

0:33:040:33:06

and a number of others would soon be investigated by the authorities.

0:33:060:33:10

Vintage guitars worth one million euros

0:33:120:33:14

had been stolen from a shop in Italy the previous year.

0:33:140:33:18

And several of these eventually turned up

0:33:190:33:21

in Music Ground's Leeds store.

0:33:210:33:23

Detective Chris Lord was investigating this

0:33:240:33:27

for West Yorkshire Police.

0:33:270:33:30

It was an extremely long, protracted inquiry

0:33:300:33:34

that spanned four-plus years ultimately.

0:33:340:33:37

Inquiries soon lead Detective Chris Lord

0:33:400:33:43

to David Pym's Fender that he'd bought from Music Ground.

0:33:430:33:47

It was up the sale on David Pym's website but he'd failed to sell it

0:33:470:33:51

when he told customers of his concerns about the neck.

0:33:510:33:54

Police told David the shocking news that they believed it was stolen.

0:33:560:34:02

I handed over the guitar and that's the last time I saw it, I'm afraid.

0:34:020:34:05

I'd been duped and it's very upsetting.

0:34:080:34:12

And David's initial suspicions about his guitar neck

0:34:150:34:18

turned out to be well founded.

0:34:180:34:21

Forensic imaging revealed it was taken from a second stolen guitar.

0:34:210:34:26

This 1964 Fender was a cut and shut,

0:34:260:34:31

made up of two different instruments.

0:34:310:34:34

The neck of the guitar is taken from one of the stolen

0:34:340:34:39

1964 Sea Foam Green Fender Stratocasters.

0:34:390:34:42

If we look at the original photograph,

0:34:430:34:45

prior to the guitar being stolen,

0:34:450:34:48

these marks are exactly the same as the one we've recovered.

0:34:480:34:51

The body of the guitar is taken

0:34:530:34:55

from a 1966 Sunburst Fender Stratocaster.

0:34:550:34:59

And the markings on the body tie up to the photograph

0:35:000:35:03

of the stolen Fender Strat.

0:35:030:35:05

Now, these markings are essentially like a fingerprint

0:35:060:35:09

because these markings have naturally occurred over decades.

0:35:090:35:14

So why have fakers created this instrument

0:35:150:35:17

out of two stolen guitars?

0:35:170:35:19

Purely to hide the identity and integrity

0:35:210:35:24

of the original stolen guitar in a view of fraudulently passing this on

0:35:240:35:29

to some innocent buyer.

0:35:290:35:31

And the serial plate that uniquely identifies every Fender

0:35:310:35:35

appeared to be false.

0:35:350:35:36

The number couldn't be traced.

0:35:380:35:41

This particular neck plate is clearly put there in a further

0:35:410:35:45

attempt to hide the identity of this particular instrument.

0:35:450:35:48

The trail of this cut and shut fake started in Verona.

0:35:510:35:55

The two stolen guitars were owned by Pierpaolo Adda

0:35:570:36:01

and it was his store that was burgled,

0:36:010:36:04

with thieves making off with more than 150 instruments.

0:36:040:36:08

This is the window...

0:36:080:36:11

..through which the thieves entered...

0:36:140:36:16

..and steal my guitars.

0:36:170:36:19

The best part of my collection.

0:36:190:36:21

All guitars given to me by famous guitarists from all over the world.

0:36:210:36:25

The two guitars used to make the cut and shut

0:36:260:36:29

Pierpaolo believes were worth a total of £35,000.

0:36:290:36:34

But the resulting instrument that was returned to him

0:36:350:36:38

he estimates is now only worth a fifth of that.

0:36:380:36:41

They have destroyed two beautiful guitars.

0:36:420:36:45

They have created a Frankenstein monster.

0:36:450:36:48

Pierpaolo uncovered more of his stolen guitars

0:36:520:36:54

on the Music Ground website.

0:36:540:36:56

This 1971 Les Paul Sunburst had also been subjected to fakery

0:36:580:37:03

to hide its true identity.

0:37:030:37:05

They're a fake serial number.

0:37:070:37:09

The original one has been scratched.

0:37:090:37:13

A new serial number has been embossed.

0:37:130:37:16

But to expert eyes like Pierpaolo's,

0:37:160:37:19

the age of the finish reveals its dark secret.

0:37:190:37:22

If you look carefully,

0:37:220:37:25

there is a difference between this part, I mean the neck,

0:37:250:37:29

and the upper part - the peg end.

0:37:290:37:32

This is opaque, you can see because it is other....other finish,

0:37:320:37:37

40 years old.

0:37:370:37:39

This is more shining because it's a newer finish,

0:37:400:37:45

five years old probably.

0:37:450:37:46

The Les Paul has since been returned to Pierpaolo.

0:37:480:37:52

He estimates it was originally worth around £4,000.

0:37:520:37:56

But after the fakers got their hands on it,

0:37:560:37:59

Pierpaolo believes the botched paintwork has halved its value.

0:37:590:38:03

A guitar is a piece of art.

0:38:030:38:06

How can you destroy it just to make money?

0:38:060:38:09

Although there's no evidence that Music Ground was involved

0:38:120:38:15

in the theft or the fakery, this wasn't the first time

0:38:150:38:18

that the company had been accused of selling fake guitars.

0:38:180:38:22

Justin Harrison had offered Fender enthusiast Dave

0:38:240:38:27

what was described as a 1964 Candy Apple Red Telecaster.

0:38:270:38:31

We agreed a purchase price of £17,000.

0:38:330:38:37

Sounds a lot of money but it is quite a rare instrument.

0:38:370:38:40

After paying up, it took over six months

0:38:410:38:43

for Dave's Candy Apple Red Fender to arrive from Music Ground.

0:38:430:38:47

Externally it looked fine.

0:38:490:38:51

It looked to be what it was supposed to be.

0:38:510:38:54

But when Dave dismantled his new vintage 1964 Fender

0:38:560:39:00

to replace a small part, he was shocked by what he found.

0:39:000:39:04

It was fairly evident that,

0:39:050:39:07

when you actually stuck your nose into the small cavities,

0:39:070:39:12

that the paint there actually smelt of being new paint which, clearly,

0:39:120:39:16

for a guitar that was supposedly manufactured in 1964

0:39:160:39:21

shouldn't have been the case.

0:39:210:39:23

So the Candy Apple Red finish that made Dave's Fender

0:39:230:39:26

so rare was potentially fake.

0:39:260:39:29

He had the guitar examined by two vintage experts.

0:39:310:39:34

David Pym was one of them.

0:39:340:39:37

I could smell the paint,

0:39:370:39:39

and that is fatal for a 1964 original finish.

0:39:390:39:43

You wouldn't be able to smell the paint at all.

0:39:430:39:45

It would have no smell other than just a mustiness.

0:39:450:39:48

I did have a glance at the parts on it

0:39:480:39:50

and I assumed that the whole thing was put together

0:39:500:39:54

and manufactured to sell for a big profit.

0:39:540:39:59

The experts confirmed Dave's worst fears.

0:40:000:40:03

Clearly the guitar was a fake.

0:40:030:40:06

It was not original...

0:40:090:40:11

..in any way, shape or form

0:40:120:40:14

and it certainly appeared that it had been deliberately built to deceive.

0:40:140:40:20

Armed with this evidence,

0:40:220:40:24

Dave went back to Justin Harrison at Music Ground.

0:40:240:40:26

After Harrison dismantled his Fender,

0:40:280:40:30

he agreed it wasn't original and refunded Dave £17,000.

0:40:300:40:35

Music Ground told us that they purchased the Fender Telecaster

0:40:380:40:42

from a dealer in the United States.

0:40:420:40:43

When it was discovered that it wasn't original, they say

0:40:480:40:52

they provided a full refund.

0:40:520:40:53

They say they've -

0:40:550:40:57

Richard and Justin Harrison were eventually charged

0:41:010:41:04

with handling stolen goods

0:41:040:41:06

in relation to the guitar theft in Verona.

0:41:060:41:09

At Leeds Crown Court, Richard Harrison pleaded guilty

0:41:090:41:13

to one count of handling ten stolen guitars

0:41:130:41:15

and received a 12-month suspended sentence.

0:41:150:41:19

His son Justin pleaded guilty to two counts

0:41:190:41:22

of handling a stolen guitar

0:41:220:41:23

and received a six-month suspended sentence.

0:41:230:41:27

Both men said in court that they were unaware that the guitars

0:41:270:41:30

were stolen when they acquired them.

0:41:300:41:32

The danger is new, young people coming to the fore,

0:41:320:41:37

wanting to learn to play a guitar, wanting to copy their hero...

0:41:370:41:42

..buying a guitar and not getting the right product.

0:41:430:41:46

There haven't just been problems in the vintage market.

0:41:500:41:54

Guitarist Magazine's resident expert David Burlock

0:41:540:41:58

warns of modern fakes in circulation,

0:41:580:42:00

particularly on the internet.

0:42:000:42:03

We've certainly heard of incidences where more contemporary

0:42:030:42:06

instruments are being cloned, if you want.

0:42:060:42:09

There's lots of these things, you know, coming from China

0:42:100:42:14

and the problem simply comes

0:42:140:42:17

when the consumer thinks they're buying a new Ibanez guitar

0:42:170:42:22

or a new Gibson and it's made in a hurry in China.

0:42:220:42:26

And of course once you've paid your money,

0:42:260:42:29

it's not always easy to get it back.

0:42:290:42:31

He has wise words for anyone thinking about buying an instrument.

0:42:330:42:36

I think it's exactly the same as buying a car, you know,

0:42:380:42:40

you don't just go to a garage and say, "I'll have that one."

0:42:400:42:43

You know, you research.

0:42:440:42:46

Why would you buy a musical instrument without playing it?

0:42:480:42:50

Be careful, do your homework, get a second opinion.

0:42:500:42:54

That's all from Fake Britain. Goodbye.

0:43:000:43:02

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