The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., announced today that it has succeeded in removing fake Yokohama aluminium wheels from the market in China. Authorities in Foshan, Guangdong Province aided this most recent victory against counterfeiters.
The rise of counterfeit car parts and the role of the IAAF in countering this threat for the benefit of the independent automotive aftermarket featured in the latest Annual IP Crime and Enforcement Report: 2018 to 2019.
The Independent Garage Association (IGA) has collaborated with the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) to highlight the dangers of counterfeit and consumer supplied car parts within the IPO’s Crime and Enforcement Report 2018-2019.
Wendy Williamson, chief executive of the Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation (IAAF), has lent further support in the fight against fake goods, when she attended Counterfeit Awareness 2019 in Bristol on July 4, in conjunction with IPO.
The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd. has reported the “successful completion” of its latest effort to eliminate counterfeit versions of its aluminium wheels in China. The distributor of these fake products has been sentenced to prison and also fined.
The distributor of counterfeit Yokohama racing wheels has been sentenced to time in prison after being found in the possession of more than 1,000 aluminium wheels. The Intermediate People’s Court of Guangzhou, in China’s Guangdong Province, also fined the distributor on 19 August.
Ipsos Business Consulting, a leader in fact-based business consulting, has published new research highlighting the risks posed by counterfeiters in China’s fast-growing automotive parts market.
China’s automotive components sector is set to achieve annual growth of 20 per cent for the next five years driven by demand for new cars and a growing secondary market. The aftermarket segment will become the main outlet for automotive parts as the average age of vehicles on the road continues to rise and the current total car population has already surpassed 100 million. The counterfeit auto parts market, already the world’s largest with a current value of about US$40bn, will only increase as the overall market grows.
Pirates aren’t lovable rogues with eye patches and parrots perched on the shoulder. Piracy, specifically brand piracy, has become a major issue for manufacturers of well-known products. One such firm, German alloy wheel manufacturer BBS, says counterfeiters who sell online and offer everything from fake centre caps to complete wheels cause the firm significant damage, and now it is taking “appropriate measures” against these pirates.
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