Director of Belfast mobile company fined £1,000 for selling counterfeit Arsenal and Manchester City phone covers

In a case brought by the Department for the Economy’s Trading Standards Service (TSS) Mr Justin Milligan (38) of Saintfield Road, Belfast, pleaded guilty to 13 charges under Section 92 of Trade Marks Act 1994.

This investigation arose following an allegation that a mobile phone repair shop in Belfast was selling counterfeit mobile phone accessories on its premises

On 25 May 2018, Trading Standards Officers visited the premises and seized 459 assorted tablet and phone covers bearing various trademarks including Apple, Arsenal Football Club, Adidas, Manchester City Football Club, Otterbox and Samsung. Subsequent examination of the seized items found them to be counterfeit.

On 19 June 2018 Trading Standards officers carried out further visits to the premises and seized an additional 544 phone accessories, including mobile phone chargers, which were confirmed as counterfeit by Samsung and Apple trade mark representatives.

Alison Gilchrist, Enforcement Officer for the Trading Standards Service, said: “Fake goods are not subject to the same stringent tests as genuine brands. Counterfeit mobile phone chargers are often made with poor quality components that fail to meet UK standards and have the potential to cause serious harm to consumers.

“The sale of counterfeit goods harms legitimate business and threatens jobs. The Trading Standards Service will continue to investigate sellers of counterfeit goods and we will not hesitate to take enforcement action against any trader found to be selling fakes. We would remind anyone involved in this type of activity that the courts can impose penalties of up to £5,000 or six months in prison per offence if trademarks or copyrights are infringed.”

Anyone who believes they have been sold counterfeit goods should contact Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 or visit www.nidirect.gov.uk/consumerline or via the Northern Ireland Trading Standards Service Facebook page.