0:00:02 > 0:00:06Welcome to a world where nothing is quite as it seems.
0:00:06 > 0:00:08Welcome to Fake Britain.
0:00:08 > 0:00:10Police!
0:00:20 > 0:00:24Get down! Get down! Put your hands behind your back, now!
0:00:24 > 0:00:26Here at the Fake Britain house,
0:00:26 > 0:00:29we'll reveal the fakes that are flooding the market,
0:00:29 > 0:00:33conning people like you and me and making money for the criminals.
0:00:33 > 0:00:36We'll investigate the fraudsters who are selling us
0:00:36 > 0:00:40something that isn't real and could be dangerous.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43And we'll help YOU avoid falling for a fake.
0:00:45 > 0:00:47Today on Fake Britain -
0:00:47 > 0:00:50the fake sunglasses that could harm your health...
0:00:50 > 0:00:52I was absolutely devastated.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55We didn't realise that I would have to lose all of the eye.
0:00:55 > 0:01:00..the puppies with fake identities being trafficked into the country...
0:01:00 > 0:01:03They came, collected him and took him away.
0:01:03 > 0:01:07..and we have a close shave with fake razor blades.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11It was tugging and it was tearing at my skin, at my hairs,
0:01:11 > 0:01:12and I just had to stop immediately.
0:01:18 > 0:01:22Designer sunglasses can be expensive, but you're paying for
0:01:22 > 0:01:26the brand and the quality of the lenses that offer high levels of
0:01:26 > 0:01:30protection from the damaging effects of the sun's ultraviolet light.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33These say 100% UV protection.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36Unfortunately, I can't believe that because these
0:01:36 > 0:01:39and all the other sunglasses here are fake.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42If you bought these, you might not only waste your money
0:01:42 > 0:01:44but also damage your eyes.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50Deborah Kane, from Manchester, believes she knows
0:01:50 > 0:01:53all about the dangers of fake sunglasses.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57When she was in her teens and 20s, like many people at the time,
0:01:57 > 0:02:01Deborah was less concerned about the dangers of UV exposure.
0:02:01 > 0:02:04She spent her summers topping up her tan
0:02:04 > 0:02:06in sunny holiday destinations.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08Deb and her friends were on a heat-seeking mission
0:02:08 > 0:02:12for the perfect tan. No pain, no gain.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15You knew you were catching the sun, because they could feel it burning
0:02:15 > 0:02:17you and you'd be there thinking, "Oh, this is great, because I am
0:02:17 > 0:02:20"getting a tan and I know, even though I'm going to burn,
0:02:20 > 0:02:21"I will get little bit of colour."
0:02:21 > 0:02:24As well as chasing the sun, Deb was keen to hunt down the best
0:02:24 > 0:02:27deal possible on fake designer sunglasses.
0:02:27 > 0:02:31We used to bargain with the guys on holiday to get as many
0:02:31 > 0:02:35different pairs off them as possible for the cheapest possible price,
0:02:35 > 0:02:39so that we could have a Chanel pair, a Dolce and Gabbana pair,
0:02:39 > 0:02:42an Armani pair, as many pairs as we want.
0:02:43 > 0:02:44A few years later though,
0:02:44 > 0:02:48Deb started to have a problem with her eyesight.
0:02:48 > 0:02:50I started getting double vision in my eye
0:02:50 > 0:02:55and went to the hospital, they had a look inside my eye
0:02:55 > 0:02:58and decided there was something pretty serious in there.
0:02:58 > 0:03:04I went and had a scan done privately and it was malignant melanoma.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07Deb had an ocular melanoma,
0:03:07 > 0:03:09a rare type of cancer that develops in the eye.
0:03:09 > 0:03:13I was absolutely devastated and at the time, when they first
0:03:13 > 0:03:18told me, we didn't realise that I would have to lose all of the eye.
0:03:19 > 0:03:20Deb's eye cancer was
0:03:20 > 0:03:24so dangerously close to her brain that there was only one option.
0:03:24 > 0:03:28Had two doctors that did it, very... really brilliant doctors,
0:03:28 > 0:03:30that I wouldn't be here without them.
0:03:30 > 0:03:34They took my eye out and the rest, I suppose, is history.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41Long-term exposure to UV light is known to
0:03:41 > 0:03:46damage our eyes in many ways and can increase the risks of cataracts,
0:03:46 > 0:03:48the leading cause of blindness.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51Cancers of the eyelid are also linked to exposure to UV light.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57Deb believes her eye cancer was due to excessive exposure to UV light
0:03:57 > 0:04:01caused by wearing fake sunglasses on holiday.
0:04:01 > 0:04:06I do think that there is a link between wearing fake sunglasses
0:04:06 > 0:04:10and me, myself getting a malignant melanoma.
0:04:12 > 0:04:15We wanted to find out more about the possible links between long-term
0:04:15 > 0:04:19ultraviolet exposure and serious eye damage,
0:04:19 > 0:04:21so we spoke to Dr Mandeep Sagoo,
0:04:21 > 0:04:26a leading eye surgeon specialising in eye tumours and ocular melanoma.
0:04:26 > 0:04:31UV light exposure in early life may lead to problems in later life.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37The effects of UV light on our eyes are being widely researched
0:04:37 > 0:04:39and some of the conclusions are worrying.
0:04:39 > 0:04:42Ocular melanoma is generally melanoma which is
0:04:42 > 0:04:43on the inside of the eye
0:04:43 > 0:04:47and there are studies out of Australia that have suggested
0:04:47 > 0:04:52a link between UV light exposure and the development of melanoma.
0:04:54 > 0:04:56When it comes to being out in bright sunlight,
0:04:56 > 0:04:59the medical advice is clear.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02Sunglasses are used to do a particular job.
0:05:02 > 0:05:07One of the key ways of protecting yourself from UV light
0:05:07 > 0:05:11exposure to the eye is to wear good sunglasses that have
0:05:11 > 0:05:14the correct UV light-blocking properties.
0:05:14 > 0:05:19Fake sunglasses may end up letting in UV light which,
0:05:19 > 0:05:24over a prolonged period, could cause damage.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26If you're going to use sunglasses,
0:05:26 > 0:05:30then they should be ones with genuine UV protection.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34And the sunglass business is booming.
0:05:34 > 0:05:39We spend over £300 million a year on sunglasses,
0:05:39 > 0:05:43so the profits to be made are pretty clear to the fakers.
0:05:46 > 0:05:50John Jacobs from Scambusters South West has been
0:05:50 > 0:05:52at the centre of one of the largest fake sunglasses operation
0:05:52 > 0:05:54he's ever had to deal with.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57If you can imagine a place similar to this,
0:05:57 > 0:06:02it was a huge warehouse with wall-to-wall fake goods, this is
0:06:02 > 0:06:08the largest quantity of fake sunglasses that we've found in one seizure.
0:06:09 > 0:06:13Somewhere of the region of 8,000 different sunglasses
0:06:13 > 0:06:19and we've got Ray Ban, Gucci, Marc Jacobs, Cartier.
0:06:19 > 0:06:20As John discovered,
0:06:20 > 0:06:24these sunglasses were a cut above the usual knock-down fakes.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27Well, here you have what appears to be
0:06:27 > 0:06:30a genuine pair of Cartier sunglasses.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32They're set in a Cartier box.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34Within the box is also the pouch
0:06:34 > 0:06:37and the documentation that goes with them.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41Quite impressive as you look at it. Looks like the genuine article.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44If I saw that for sale, then I would consider that to be the genuine article.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48And being able to dupe online buyers into thinking these
0:06:48 > 0:06:51high-end fakes were the real deal was exactly what the fakers
0:06:51 > 0:06:53were banking on.
0:06:53 > 0:06:56By selling fake sunglasses online, at close to the price
0:06:56 > 0:07:00of the genuine article, the fakers were making huge profits.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04In total, the value of the fake goods that we seized were
0:07:04 > 0:07:07well over £1 million. Over a six-month period,
0:07:07 > 0:07:10from one site that these fake sunglasses were being sold on,
0:07:10 > 0:07:14the criminals generated over £160,000,
0:07:14 > 0:07:19so you can see how large a scale of problem this was and the amount,
0:07:19 > 0:07:22the quantity of fake products being put out to the public.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25Darren Ward and Timothy Tivney
0:07:25 > 0:07:29later pleaded guilty to unauthorised use of trademarks.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32Ward was given a 13 month suspended sentence and Tivney
0:07:32 > 0:07:35a year's community order with unpaid work.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39In this major case of sunglass fakery,
0:07:39 > 0:07:43John was concerned about more than just trademark infringement.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47Claims about UV protection meant that these fake sunglasses
0:07:47 > 0:07:50could have posed a public safety risk.
0:07:50 > 0:07:55This booklet says, "The high-quality Cartier sunglasses have been
0:07:55 > 0:07:58"carefully selected to ensure excellent eye protection
0:07:58 > 0:08:01"and maximum visual comfort."
0:08:01 > 0:08:04If that is not accurate, which we believe it not to be,
0:08:04 > 0:08:06because it is a fake document,
0:08:06 > 0:08:09then there is the potential of causing long-lasting damage
0:08:09 > 0:08:15to your eyes through unprotected UVA, UVB rays coming through.
0:08:17 > 0:08:20Fake sunglasses like the ones seized in this raid are turning up
0:08:20 > 0:08:23all over the country.
0:08:23 > 0:08:25Paul Wright from Staffordshire Scientific Services
0:08:25 > 0:08:28is in charge of testing fake sunglasses that have been
0:08:28 > 0:08:31seized by his local trading standards team.
0:08:31 > 0:08:36Many of them carry fake CE and ultraviolet safety markings.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39When you see a CE mark on a sample,
0:08:39 > 0:08:43you presume that they have been tested and been shown to be safe.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45That is not always the case.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49Anyone can put a CE mark on a piece of equipment.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51There has to be something to back it up.
0:08:51 > 0:08:56Ultraviolet light from the sun is invisible light that is more
0:08:56 > 0:09:01powerful than what we see and potentially damaging to our eyes.
0:09:01 > 0:09:04Genuine sunglasses should block out some of this light
0:09:04 > 0:09:08and protect our eyes. Fake sunglasses might not.
0:09:08 > 0:09:12Paul will measure how much UV light passes through a pair of genuine
0:09:12 > 0:09:17glasses and a pair of fakes using this UV visible spectrophotometer.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21First up, the genuine sunglasses.
0:09:22 > 0:09:27A line should be drawn on this graph here, which will indicate
0:09:27 > 0:09:33the amount of light being transmitted through the lens of the glasses.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37If the sunglasses have adequate UV protection,
0:09:37 > 0:09:40this red line should begin to fall when it reaches
0:09:40 > 0:09:45the potentially harmful UV zone on the left of the screen.
0:09:45 > 0:09:47And this is what we are finding.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50Little or no light is passing through
0:09:50 > 0:09:56these lenses in the UV, UVB and UVC regions.
0:09:56 > 0:09:59So these genuine sunglasses should protect the eyes of the person
0:09:59 > 0:10:00wearing them.
0:10:03 > 0:10:05What about the fakes?
0:10:07 > 0:10:09As we reach the ultraviolet region,
0:10:09 > 0:10:12light is being transmitted through the lenses.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16Paul's suspicions about the fake sunglasses are confirmed.
0:10:16 > 0:10:21In fact, 23.6% of UVA light is passing through.
0:10:21 > 0:10:26These lenses do not provide adequate protection to the wearer.
0:10:26 > 0:10:29The consumer is at a greater risk.
0:10:31 > 0:10:33And Deb's not taking any more risks.
0:10:33 > 0:10:35These days when she goes out in the sun,
0:10:35 > 0:10:38she makes sure she wears genuine glasses.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41Fake sunglasses shouldn't be allowed.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44It's shocking what they can do to your eyes.
0:10:44 > 0:10:46If I knew now what was going to happen,
0:10:46 > 0:10:49I definitely would never have taken the chance of wearing them.
0:10:55 > 0:10:59Meet Joe and Princess. Very handsome little doggies, aren't they?
0:10:59 > 0:11:02They're Maltese terriers, which is a very popular
0:11:02 > 0:11:06and valuable breed, and they're worth around £1,200 each.
0:11:06 > 0:11:09They're both going to have one of these put under their skin.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12It's a microchip which proves who they are,
0:11:12 > 0:11:16so that their age and their inoculations can be confirmed.
0:11:16 > 0:11:20But what if the chip wasn't improving their identity, but faking it?
0:11:20 > 0:11:23What if it came from a completely different dog?
0:11:23 > 0:11:26It's the puppy smugglers' latest con.
0:11:26 > 0:11:30Joe and Princess' chip information will be genuine,
0:11:30 > 0:11:32but has your puppy's been faked?
0:11:36 > 0:11:39This is undercover footage of illegal puppy
0:11:39 > 0:11:42traffickers in Eastern Europe.
0:11:42 > 0:11:45This woman is responsible for smuggling around 1,000 puppies
0:11:45 > 0:11:47into Britain each year,
0:11:47 > 0:11:51earning herself tens of thousands of pounds.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54In a new ruse, illegal breeders are faking the identities of underage
0:11:54 > 0:11:58puppies to defeat UK border controls.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03Many of these puppies will be sold to unsuspecting British buyers.
0:12:07 > 0:12:12Dog lover Sharon Fitzpatrick found out what the puppy identity fakers
0:12:12 > 0:12:15are up to, the very hard way.
0:12:15 > 0:12:20We'd been talking about getting another puppy for quite a while.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23We both, me and my partner, like British bulldogs
0:12:23 > 0:12:25and French bulldogs.
0:12:25 > 0:12:29French bulldogs are one of Britain's most popular dog breeds with
0:12:29 > 0:12:32over 5,000 new registrations each year.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34When Sharon spotted this little fellow online,
0:12:34 > 0:12:37she thought she'd found the family pooch of her dreams.
0:12:37 > 0:12:39Sharon did background checks on the puppy
0:12:39 > 0:12:42and was told he was a six-month-old British-born dog
0:12:42 > 0:12:46with a microchip, passport and all his vaccinations.
0:12:46 > 0:12:50We paid £2,000 for him, because, as far as we were concerned,
0:12:50 > 0:12:53we wanted a proper French bulldog from a reputable breeder.
0:12:53 > 0:12:56Hugo quickly became one of the family.
0:12:56 > 0:12:58Just fell in love with him straightaway.
0:12:58 > 0:13:03He was just the right one for us, so it was just so nice.
0:13:03 > 0:13:08But Sharon's joy with the new housemate Hugo was to be short-lived.
0:13:08 > 0:13:10He started coughing,
0:13:10 > 0:13:14and Sunday lunchtime, he was really sniffly, runny nose,
0:13:14 > 0:13:20really not himself, very lethargic, wouldn't play, which is not a puppy.
0:13:20 > 0:13:23Sharon rushed Hugo to the local vet who could immediately see
0:13:23 > 0:13:29that Hugo was just nine weeks old. The vet scanned Hugo's microchip.
0:13:29 > 0:13:33He came back in and told us, "Sorry, but this puppy's been imported."
0:13:33 > 0:13:37Bizarrely, Hugo's microchip showed that he was a six-month-old
0:13:37 > 0:13:41Hungarian dog, not a nine-week-old British puppy.
0:13:41 > 0:13:44His chip had been switched to smuggle him into the country.
0:13:44 > 0:13:49He'd been given a fake identity and now he had pneumonia.
0:13:49 > 0:13:52That was very emotional.
0:13:52 > 0:13:56I cried, because we'd gone into the vet's with a puppy
0:13:56 > 0:13:58and walking out with nothing.
0:13:58 > 0:14:01And it was just a horrible thought of having to go home
0:14:01 > 0:14:04and tell the children that we've no longer got
0:14:04 > 0:14:07a puppy at the moment because he's very ill.
0:14:07 > 0:14:11It was very touch-and-go then if he was going to come home or not.
0:14:11 > 0:14:13Fortunately, Hugo did pull through.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16But Sharon's ordeal wasn't over.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18I get a phone call from Trading Standards to say,
0:14:18 > 0:14:22"I'm really sorry, but we have to come and get Hugo, because he has
0:14:22 > 0:14:26"to go into proper quarantine because he's been illegally imported."
0:14:26 > 0:14:29And they came and collected him and took him away.
0:14:29 > 0:14:32Sorry.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34And that was just heart-wrenching,
0:14:34 > 0:14:36because this was just all before Christmas.
0:14:39 > 0:14:41And it ruined our Christmas.
0:14:41 > 0:14:46We've got an empty cage sat in the corner and no Hugo.
0:14:47 > 0:14:51Upsetting as it was for Sharon, Trading Standards had good
0:14:51 > 0:14:54reason to rush Hugo into quarantine near Bristol.
0:14:56 > 0:14:58For kennel owner Meg Purnell-Carpenter,
0:14:58 > 0:15:01it was a matter of national public health.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03Hugo could have had rabies
0:15:03 > 0:15:08and nobody would've found out about it, and what is worrying
0:15:08 > 0:15:13is Hugo is only one of hundreds of puppies like this.
0:15:13 > 0:15:16In fact, thousands of puppies with fake identities are being
0:15:16 > 0:15:18trafficked into Britain each year.
0:15:18 > 0:15:22Under the pet travel scheme, puppies are implanted with microchips
0:15:22 > 0:15:24which show where the puppy comes from.
0:15:24 > 0:15:28The chip number matches the number in the puppy passport.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31That shows how old the dog is and what jabs it's had.
0:15:31 > 0:15:36Puppies have to be at least 15 weeks old to enter Britain.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Any younger and their rabies vaccines are ineffective,
0:15:39 > 0:15:41but the fakers know that younger,
0:15:41 > 0:15:44cute puppies can be worth thousands more than older dogs.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46They've found a way to smuggle underage
0:15:46 > 0:15:50puppies into the country, cutting costs by not having them
0:15:50 > 0:15:53vaccinated, and that's what happened to Hugo.
0:15:53 > 0:15:56The microchip was taken out of a six-month-old puppy
0:15:56 > 0:16:02and then implanted into Hugo, making it a fake identity microchip
0:16:02 > 0:16:03and Hugo was a fake.
0:16:03 > 0:16:07In Hugo's case, the fakers gave him
0:16:07 > 0:16:10the microchip of a six-month-old dog to circumvent the system
0:16:10 > 0:16:12and get the young pup into the country.
0:16:14 > 0:16:18The Dogs Trust is the UK's largest dog welfare charity.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20They're so concerned about the trafficking of puppies with
0:16:20 > 0:16:23fake identities that they sent investigators to
0:16:23 > 0:16:27Eastern Europe to secretly film illegal breeders preparing
0:16:27 > 0:16:31puppies with microchips, ready for export.
0:16:31 > 0:16:33Many of the dogs destined for trafficking were being
0:16:33 > 0:16:38held in appalling conditions before embarking on their arduous
0:16:38 > 0:16:39journey to be sold.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42Paula Boyden is a qualified vet
0:16:42 > 0:16:44and veterinary director of the Dogs Trust.
0:16:44 > 0:16:48She's worried about the routine switching of microchips.
0:16:48 > 0:16:49So this is a microchip.
0:16:49 > 0:16:53You can see it's a little bigger than a grain of rice
0:16:53 > 0:16:56and it's amazing that something this small is
0:16:56 > 0:17:00actually leading on to the forgery of all of this information.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06It's worrying, the whole microchip situation, which is a means
0:17:06 > 0:17:07to try and identify individuals,
0:17:07 > 0:17:09again it's just being totally abused.
0:17:11 > 0:17:15Paula showed us some undercover footage of an illegal puppy breeder.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18What we've got here is one of our Hungarian breeders that was
0:17:18 > 0:17:21actually implanting a puppy with a microchip.
0:17:21 > 0:17:24But do these illegal breeders know what they're doing?
0:17:24 > 0:17:26PUPPY SQUEALS
0:17:26 > 0:17:29The puppy is certainly under some distress while she's doing that.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35Microchip implantation should only be done by a qualified person,
0:17:35 > 0:17:39but illegal breeders like this are prepared to teach other DIY
0:17:39 > 0:17:44breeders, or in this case undercover investigators, how to do it
0:17:44 > 0:17:45if the price is right.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48We were given instructions of how to implant the microchip.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51Now, again from a veterinary surgeon's perspective, that is
0:17:51 > 0:17:52incredibly worrying.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56You're implanting the microchip in between the shoulder blades at
0:17:56 > 0:18:00the back of the neck. Too deep, you're straight into the spinal canal.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03By swapping microchips from dog to dog, illegal breeders aren't
0:18:03 > 0:18:06just changing the ages of trafficked puppies.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10They're faking where they come from to make them more desirable.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19Irish or German registered microchips are more highly
0:18:19 > 0:18:23prized than those from Eastern Europe as buyers often assume Irish
0:18:23 > 0:18:27or German puppies are in better condition, with a better lineage.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29By swapping microchips around,
0:18:29 > 0:18:32this puppy identity faker is making a killing.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35This one individual is responsible for almost 1,000
0:18:35 > 0:18:37puppies a year coming into the UK.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40An individual bringing five puppies a week into the UK
0:18:40 > 0:18:44could easily be making in excess of £100,000 per year.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46And there's a risk of disease to the British
0:18:46 > 0:18:50public from trafficked puppies that haven't had their vaccinations.
0:18:50 > 0:18:54A worrying disease is a tapeworm called Echinococcus.
0:18:54 > 0:18:57Now, again, this is zoonotic, it can affect you and I.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59It really is quite a nasty disease.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02The tapeworm will exist in organs such as the liver, which will
0:19:02 > 0:19:07significantly affect an individual's quality of life and their lifespan.
0:19:07 > 0:19:09Echinococcus is already kicking at the shores of France
0:19:09 > 0:19:13and again it's not a disease that we want to have in the country.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17Back at the kennels, it's a big day for Sharon.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19Hiya, Meg.
0:19:19 > 0:19:21- Big day to come.- I know. I can't wait!
0:19:21 > 0:19:27She's about to be reunited with puppy Hugo after a five-week wait.
0:19:27 > 0:19:32Hugo! Gorgeous! Hello, baby!
0:19:32 > 0:19:34Hello! Hello!
0:19:34 > 0:19:38Hello, gorgeous. You smell gorgeous.
0:19:38 > 0:19:39You had a bath.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43We can now register him officially with Petlogs,
0:19:43 > 0:19:47so then he's registered to me and he'll be our dog for ever.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50- And he's not a faker any longer. - And he's no longer a fake.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00Male grooming is booming.
0:20:00 > 0:20:05Over 160 million quid is spent every year on the bestselling brand of
0:20:05 > 0:20:10razor alone, all in the pursuit of a smoother, closer, cut-free shave.
0:20:10 > 0:20:14But, if you were spending your money on these, you'd be in trouble.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17Because you've just had a close shave with the fakers.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22Gillette razors are one of Britain's biggest
0:20:22 > 0:20:25and bestselling brands of disposable, wet razor.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28Since they hit our shelves in 1980...
0:20:28 > 0:20:31..the best a man can get...
0:20:31 > 0:20:34..100 million Gillette blades are now sold each year in Britain.
0:20:34 > 0:20:38Made for men, but also borrowed by wives, girlfriends and daughters,
0:20:38 > 0:20:43Mach blades are amongst the country's most shoplifted items.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46They don't come cheap, at around £10 for a pack of four.
0:20:48 > 0:20:51The fakers want a slice of the profits,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54as lifelong wet shaver Andy Green discovered.
0:20:54 > 0:20:57I do spend a lot of money on blades.
0:20:57 > 0:21:01I always try to buy the latest blade innovation, if you like.
0:21:03 > 0:21:07One day Andy received an e-mail from an established online
0:21:07 > 0:21:10retailer offering him nine Gillette Mach 3 blades
0:21:10 > 0:21:12with a razor handle for 15 quid.
0:21:12 > 0:21:16It was the few pounds less than he'd expected to pay on the high street.
0:21:16 > 0:21:18So Andy bought them.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21When the blades arrived, the packaging looked fine,
0:21:21 > 0:21:24I had no cause to assume that there was anything wrong with them.
0:21:24 > 0:21:26The company I bought them from,
0:21:26 > 0:21:29I'd bought from before and had been very happy with my purchases.
0:21:29 > 0:21:32Andy didn't give the razor blades a second thought
0:21:32 > 0:21:34until the morning of his next shave.
0:21:34 > 0:21:38I opened the packet, put the fresh blade in the handle,
0:21:38 > 0:21:41I lathered by face and I started to shave.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45But...there was a catch.
0:21:47 > 0:21:51I noticed immediately it was tugging and it was tearing at my skin,
0:21:51 > 0:21:53at my hairs and I just had to stop immediately,
0:21:53 > 0:21:55I knew there was something wrong.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58The blades weren't cutting it!
0:21:58 > 0:22:02When you're having your hairs tugged rather than cut
0:22:02 > 0:22:04out of your face, it is quite a painful experience.
0:22:05 > 0:22:09The feel of the blade I was using was really uncomfortable.
0:22:09 > 0:22:12Compare that to the blade I was used to
0:22:12 > 0:22:15and the blade I was expecting, which gives a nice, smooth,
0:22:15 > 0:22:17lubricated cut, this was nothing like that.
0:22:17 > 0:22:21My feelings were one of anger, having been sold blades that
0:22:21 > 0:22:25weren't fit for purpose and they could quite easily have cut me.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29There was only one thing for it, Andy sent the razor blades to
0:22:29 > 0:22:32Procter & Gamble, who manufacture Gillette razor blades.
0:22:32 > 0:22:36They stated that these razor blades were indeed fake.
0:22:36 > 0:22:38I was really angry.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41I'm quite shocked that these fake razor blades are being sold online.
0:22:41 > 0:22:45They were a bit cheaper than retail but not enough to make me
0:22:45 > 0:22:47think they were dodgy or fake.
0:22:47 > 0:22:51Fake Britain wanted to know what a shaving expert would
0:22:51 > 0:22:54make of the fake razor blades that Andy bought.
0:22:54 > 0:22:58So we took some identical fake blades to Parsa Rad,
0:22:58 > 0:23:02whose shaving skills are a cut above those of the average male groomer.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05He has been crowned Britain's Fastest Wet Shaver.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08He can shave a man in under a minute.
0:23:08 > 0:23:12Parsa uses only the sharpest, genuine blades.
0:23:12 > 0:23:15About the fakes... he's pretty blunt.
0:23:15 > 0:23:19It has just been completely split into two.
0:23:19 > 0:23:21The blades are uneven, as well.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24They're going to catch the skin and will strip the skin off.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26So...
0:23:26 > 0:23:27..we shall see.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29And Fake Britain did want to see.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32We asked Parsa to put the fake razor blades to the test,
0:23:32 > 0:23:37alongside the real ones with a bit of help from our beardy assistant.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40The right side of our brave subject's face will be shaved
0:23:40 > 0:23:42with a genuine blade
0:23:42 > 0:23:44and the left side with the fake.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47First up, Parsa gets to grips with the genuine razor blades.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50It's very smooth and you can see the result,
0:23:50 > 0:23:52how it's taking all the beard off.
0:23:52 > 0:23:55It's without any damage to the skin.
0:23:58 > 0:24:00What about the fake?
0:24:00 > 0:24:03I have to be very, very careful and gentle. It's already pulling.
0:24:03 > 0:24:06You can see that they're not shaving everything off.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09It's an immediate fail for this fake blade.
0:24:09 > 0:24:11It's a grazer, not a razor.
0:24:11 > 0:24:13It's not even shaving.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16If I'm going to push it from here, the client will start jumping.
0:24:16 > 0:24:20You can see that, a very, very big difference.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23Even I'm stretching the skin, it just leaves the beard behind.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26The quality of the shave on this side is a huge difference
0:24:26 > 0:24:28to the other side.
0:24:30 > 0:24:33Parsa is left having to tidy up Fake Britain's rather patchy
0:24:33 > 0:24:36researcher with his own cut-throat razor.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42I would definitely not recommend these to use at home
0:24:42 > 0:24:44because they're quite dangerous.
0:24:46 > 0:24:48Fake Britain wanted to find out more about the international
0:24:48 > 0:24:50trade in fake razor blades,
0:24:50 > 0:24:54so we spoke to Francis Chalk from Bristol Trading Standards.
0:24:54 > 0:24:58He's been leading an investigation into a woman called Jocelyn Hunter
0:24:58 > 0:25:02and one of the country's largest fake razor blades cases.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05What Jocelyn Hunter was doing was acting as the middleman,
0:25:05 > 0:25:08or go-between, between the factories in China
0:25:08 > 0:25:11and the eventual customers in Europe, such as other retailers
0:25:11 > 0:25:15in places like Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Poland
0:25:15 > 0:25:20and it was seen as a lot easier to get goods into UK first
0:25:20 > 0:25:22and then export them out into Europe,
0:25:22 > 0:25:25rather than send them from China directly into Europe.
0:25:26 > 0:25:29But Francis's team was onto Hunter.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33They intercepted a shipment of fake razor blades at Coventry Postal Hub,
0:25:33 > 0:25:36which led them to a suburban street in Wiltshire.
0:25:36 > 0:25:40We were surprised by the sheer volume of fake razor blades
0:25:40 > 0:25:44that were basically being controlled from one small house in Swindon.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46We've got 46 parcels here
0:25:46 > 0:25:50and there's one e-mail which talks about almost 200,000 boxes,
0:25:50 > 0:25:54which we conservatively have estimated a value of £2.5 million.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58It was one of the largest seizures of fake razor blades
0:25:58 > 0:26:00ever made in the UK.
0:26:00 > 0:26:05It wasn't just the scale of the operation that was impressive,
0:26:05 > 0:26:08the quality of the packaging of the fake blades was like nothing
0:26:08 > 0:26:11Trading Standards had ever seen before.
0:26:11 > 0:26:13This is a fake set of blades in my right hand,
0:26:13 > 0:26:16in my left hand I've got a genuine set of blades.
0:26:16 > 0:26:17When you look at the packaging,
0:26:17 > 0:26:19it's very difficult to tell them apart.
0:26:19 > 0:26:21If you saw that in isolation,
0:26:21 > 0:26:23you would never know that was fake.
0:26:24 > 0:26:29And the fakers' attention to detail continued beneath the packaging.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32The quality of these fakes is very, very good.
0:26:32 > 0:26:34It does really take an expert to tell them apart.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37To the untrained eye, you'd never be able to tell
0:26:37 > 0:26:39the difference between them and the real thing.
0:26:39 > 0:26:44You do have to be almost impressed that they are such good copies.
0:26:44 > 0:26:47Trading Standards finally had enough evidence
0:26:47 > 0:26:49to arrest and charge Hunter.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52Francis Chalk was at court for the final verdict.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55I've just come from Swindon Crown Court, where Jocelyn Hunter
0:26:55 > 0:26:58has been sentenced for 15 months for selling fake razor blades.
0:26:58 > 0:27:01It really does reflect the gravity of the offences
0:27:01 > 0:27:04that she was involved in, selling these fake products that could
0:27:04 > 0:27:07potentially be dangerous and also insanitary.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12These fake razor blades were seized before they could do any damage.
0:27:12 > 0:27:17Fake Britain wanted to find out how easy it might be to buy others.
0:27:17 > 0:27:20We bought 32 Gillette Fusion Power cartridges
0:27:20 > 0:27:24from an internet seller for around £45.
0:27:24 > 0:27:28A tempting bargain at around half the price of the high street.
0:27:29 > 0:27:33We sent the blades to James Williams at Procter & Gamble for analysis.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36He confirmed that the blades we bought were fake.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40There's only one way to see the real difference
0:27:40 > 0:27:43between our fake blades and the genuine article.
0:27:43 > 0:27:46Under 1,000 times magnification on an electro-microscope,
0:27:46 > 0:27:48the difference is stark.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51What you see is the real Gillette razor blade here with a clean,
0:27:51 > 0:27:54consistent and razor-sharp edge that's actually thinner
0:27:54 > 0:27:56than a surgeon's scalpel.
0:27:56 > 0:27:59As opposed to on the counterfeit, we see this,
0:27:59 > 0:28:01jagged, uneven edge
0:28:01 > 0:28:03which is going to give a very poor shave.
0:28:03 > 0:28:07Much more chance of nicks, cuts.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10When you see this razor blade, people will be shocked at what
0:28:10 > 0:28:13they might be able to get hold of if they buy a counterfeit product.
0:28:13 > 0:28:15It looks dangerous and it is dangerous.
0:28:15 > 0:28:17You wouldn't want to shave with it.
0:28:22 > 0:28:24That's all from Fake Britain.
0:28:24 > 0:28:25Goodbye.