During a seizure, the customs officers of Blagnac (31), near Toulouse, recovered a thousand keys of counterfeit cars as well as a handful of other automotive objects. In total, there are ten manufacturers whose articles have been imitated.
Perhaps you have already come across, on an online shopping site or elsewhere, on a car key to be programmed, new and visually identical to the one that can be purchased directly from the manufacturer. The difference comes from the price! They are sold at unbeatable prices. These are often counterfeits. The customs officers of Blagnac, in Haute-Garonne (31), have just got their hands on no less than 15,066 counterfeit items including 998 car keys.
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From electronic tracking to data entry
The customs officers who carried out the seizure were alerted by their colleagues in Roissy (93). They had “targeted” electronically a package bound for Blagnac, which the local agents therefore intercepted and opened. They discovered 534 counterfeit cases and facades of telephones. Following this capture, customs officers went to the address of the company receiving the package, in the same department, for a check which resulted in the seizure.
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A dozen builders imitated
Among the objects discovered were replica keys from Peugeot, Citroën, Opel, Audi, Mercedes, Volkswagen, Fiat, Kia, Hyundai and Toyota, sometimes in spare parts and for some accompanied by cases also identical to the originals. A few other automotive items were seized, including Audi-branded hub caps. The manager of the recipient company was ordered to pay a customs fine, the amount of which was not disclosed. ” Those who produce counterfeits, like those who sell them, seek a maximum return for a minimum investment, by not fulfilling any of the responsibilities, social and legal obligations that a regularly established brand guarantees to its customers. “, Recalled Bruno Le Maire, Minister of the Economy. It will be added that, in the absence of European approval in particular, counterfeit items do not meet any applicable safety standards (degradation, flammability, etc.), and that their compatibility with the cars for which they are offered is not guaranteed.
