Fake car parts warning, as £100k of potentially lethal components seized

Motorists are being warned to remain vigilant against buying fake car parts following a major raid by the authorities, which resulted in over £100,000 worth of “potentially lethal” counterfeit components being seized.

The operation by South Gloucestershire Trading Standards was aided by eight manufacturers such as Toyota and Stellantis – the parent company of Vauxhall and Peugeot, among others. It saw over 3,600 bogus-branded components, including spark plugs and oil filters, removed from a self-storage facility and followed another raid by City of London Police late last year, which resulted in 500 counterfeit airbags being seized.

Raids such as these are indicative of how lucrative the market for counterfeit car parts is; a study conducted in 2024 by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development suggested that in 2021 over £2.2 billion worth of fake car components were imported to the UK. It’s perhaps not surprising then that one in six people the government’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) surveyed had bought fake car parts within the previous 12 months.

So why is this an issue? Counterfeit parts are typically much cheaper than the official alternative and in the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, motorists will understandably want to save every penny they can; three in 10 who had bought fake parts cited the lower cost as a driving factor for their purchase, and a third also said they bought fake car parts because they couldn’t see any difference from the authentic equivalent. 

However, the IPO’s deputy director of enforcement, Helen Barnham, explained: “Counterfeit vehicle parts can lead to life-changing or life-ending consequences for road users. This is anything but a victimless crime. These fake parts bypass safety tests and are often made with vastly inferior materials, putting them at serious risk of failure with potentially devastating results.

"This latest seizure demonstrates that criminals are continuing to exploit the use of legitimate self storage facilities across the UK to store counterfeit goods,” she continued, “We're working closely with law enforcement across the UK to stay ahead of the criminals, but motorists must stay vigilant, especially when buying parts online.”

According to the IPO, the main red flags to look out for are vague product descriptions, poor-quality packaging, a lack of safety guidelines, incorrect serial numbers and misspelled/poorly worded instructions. Motorists are encouraged to buy parts from trusted suppliers and to report any suspicious-looking products to Trading Standards.

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