Toys for popular characters often have fakes and counterfeits. Sometimes they can be quite dangerous. Here are the toys which most often have fakes.
The data comes from the New Zealand Customs, Stuff.co.nz reported. The authorities have intercepted over 20 500 counterfeit products in 2017.
This is way down since 2016 when it was a record year with 68 055 fake products. The most popular brand to be faked was Dora the Explorer. There were about 800 different Dora the Explorer fake items found by Customs.
Only last year authorities intercepted more than 10 000 fake toys. This puts fake toys at the top of all types of fake products. A distant second are electronics with 3800 fakes and clothes and accessories with 3200 fakes.
Meanwhile the Anti-Counterfeiting Group announced that 12% of all toys for sale in the UK are fakes. Toys from top brands like LEGO, Hasbro and Mattel also often get fakes which try to use their popular market share.
Outside of toys, popular fashion brands also often have fakes. The most common fake fashion brands included Adidas, Nike and Australian and Kiwi designer-brands Sass & Bide, Karen Waker and Alice McCall.
Basically, parents have to be careful when they buy toys for their kids. Counterfeit toys haven’t passed the same safety tests as the originals, so they might be dangerous for the kids. This is why parents have to be vigilant and pay attention to the products they want to buy.
Not all fakes come with a significantly lower price. Some try to use the actual brand’s name to squeeze even more profits with higher prices. So, be careful.
