30,000 fake automotive parts were seized in Dubai during the first half of 2012, according to the Department of Economic Development (DED).
The government organisation revealed earlier this month that approximately 30,000 fake automotive parts were confiscated in Dubai from January through May of this year, after having raided auto spare parts stores and warehouses across the Emirate.
The numbers suggest that the scale of the fake parts problem may be in decline – in September 2011 police seized 30,000 Toyota parts in one week, and in June 2010 police netted 65,000 parts in a series of raids in the Al Qusais industrial area.
A-MAP’s managing director, Asad Badami, said that the increase in sales for aftermarket parts companies like A-MAP suggests that UAE customers are increasingly opting for quality over corner-cutting.
“Fake parts are the scourge of UAE roads. While they may be cheaper, they are not tested, and the safety profile is very questionable. Car owners should know that it’s not worth risking their own lives and indeed the lives of other road users when buying these illegitimate parts,” said Badami.
He believes that educating the public to the risks the risks to both their vehicles and their lives is one way to help stamp out the fake parts trade, estimated globally to be worth $16 billion.
Alexander Liske, a board member on the Brand Owners’ Protection Group (BPG), Automotive Cluster, as well Ford Motor Company’s brand protection manager in the Middle East, said that while raids have been very successful, sellers of counterfeit goods are becoming more sophisticated.
Parts may be kept unbranded in a warehouse, and only once an order has been placed will the fake branding be applied.
Liske says that the responsibility for avoiding fake parts lies with the end user, the owner of the car or truck.
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