Guidance

Trading Standards IP Crime survey and Successes 2023 to 2024

Published 5 November 2024

Trading Standards Survey 2023-2024

The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) conducted its annual survey of Trading Standards Officers’ work on intellectual property (IP) crime for the period April 2023 to March 2024. 75% of local authorities (142 out of 188) responded to the survey, continuing a strong trend from previous years.

The survey ran from 8 April 2024 to 15 May 2024 and provides insight on the scale and scope of IP crime in the UK from the perspective of Trading Standards Officers.

The IPO has been supporting Trading Standards officers to tackle IP crime through various initiatives:

• IP Coordinators: Embedded in regional Trading Standards Services they raise awareness of IP crime and infringement and support Trading Standards Officers with investigations and projects

• Tick Box Scheme, helps Trading Standards Officers work with self storage businesses to raise standards and tackle IP criminality in their facilities. Since 2020, millions of pounds of counterfeit and illicit goods have been seized through the scheme

• training: The IPO has been supporting intellectual property training for Trading Standards Officers for more than a decade. In partnership with the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) they provide 12 courses each year. These courses are complimented by the CTSI Professional Competency in Intellectual Property, which enables officers to differentiate between the aspects of intellectual property; advise on civil aspects of IP ownership and infringement; appreciate the various methods of protecting IP and investigate alleged criminal offences

Highlights

• top Investigated Sectors: Clothing and tobacco products remain the most investigated IP crime sectors while vaping products have increased significantly. Perfume, footwear, electricals and watches/jewellery, remain significant focusses for investigation, with an increase in the number of investigations relating to toys and perfume

• location: Physical premises remain the most investigated, with a growing number of cases on social media platforms

• links to other crimes: Counterfeit goods are often connected to other criminal activities.  Organised criminal groups top the chart, followed by money laundering, drug dealing, modern day slavery and benefit fraud

• collaboration: This year saw increased cooperation between Trading Standards Officers, other law enforcement agencies and industry partners

Chart 1. Question: What type of counterfeit/pirated and design infringing goods have you investigated for this fiscal year?

This is a multiple select question based on responses from the 142 Trading Standards departments completing the survey, and each type of good is shown as a proportion to those goods investigated. From this, the top 10 types of good investigated are presented.

Products	Percentage of authorities responded
Cigarettes/Tobacco	80%
Clothing	66%
Electronic Vaping	44%
Perfume	35%
Footwear	33%
Electrical Goods	27%
Watches, Jewellery	27%
Alcohol	23%
Toys	18%
Cosmetics/Makeup	16%

Chart 2. Question: Where have you investigated counterfeit / pirated goods and design infringing since April 2023?

This is a multiple select question based on responses from the 142 Trading Standards departments completing the survey, and each type of location is shown as a proportion to those goods investigated. From this, the top 10 types of location investigated are presented.

Location	Percentage of authorities responded
Ordinary Shops	81%
Social Media	49%
Private Residences	30%
Websites	29%
On the street	24%
Outdoor Markets	22%
Online Auction Sites	17%
Self Storage Facilities	15%
Car Boot Sales	13%
Factories and Industrial Units	10%

Chart 3. Top investigated counterfeit/pirated and design infringing goods (2019/20 to 2023/24)

This is a multiple select question based on responses from Trading Standards departments completing the survey between 2019 and 2024.  Each type of location is shown as a proportion to those goods investigated. From this, the top 10 types of location investigated are presented. Full breakdown for previous fiscal years can be found in previous reports at IP enforcement reports.

Products	2019/2020	2020/2021	2021/2022	2022/2023	2023/2024
Cigarettes/Tobacco	86%	75%	88%	81%	80%
Clothing	81%	64%	76%	66%	66%
Electronic Vaping	16%	3%	35%	44%	44%
Perfume	43%	23%	28%	25%	35%
Footwear	47%	37%	43%	32%	33%
Electrical Goods	37%	23%	27%	31%	27%
Watches, Jewellery	41%	23%	25%	29%	27%
Alcohol	47%	35%	39%	26%	23%
Toys	17%	11%	10%	11%	18%
Cosmetics/Makeup	44%	31%	28%	23%	16%

Chart 4. Top five investigated locations for counterfeit/pirated and design infringing goods (2019/20 to 2023/24)

This is a multiple select question based on responses from Trading Standards departments completing the survey from 2019 to 2024. Each location is shown as a proportion to those goods investigated. From this, the top five types of locations investigated are presented. Full breakdown for previous fiscal years can be found in previous reports at IP enforcement reports.

Locations	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23	2023/24
Ordinary Shops	75%	68%	82%	83%	81%
Social Media	67%	53%	50%	44%	49%
Private Residences	41%	30%	31%	28%	30%
Websites	39%	34%	37%	33%	29%
On the street	29%	16%	15%	15%	24%

Chart 5.  Top five links between people committing IP crimes and other types of criminality/dishonesty observed during investigations.

This is a multiple select question based on responses from Trading Standards departments completing the survey from 2019 to 2024.  Each category of criminality/dishonesty is shown as a proportion to those goods investigated. From this, the top five types of criminality/dishonesty are presented. Full breakdown for previous fiscal years can be found in previous reports at IP enforcement reports.

Links to other criminality	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23	2023/2024
Organised Criminal Groups	37%	32%	40%	34%	42%
Money Laundering	34%	23%	25%	27%	25%
Drug Dealing	14%	16%	17%	18%	18%
People Trafficking/Modern day slavery	17%	11%	14%	15%	17%
Benefit Fraud	25%	19%	23%	17%	16%

Chart 6. Top five public sector engaged over the past five fiscal years.

This is a multiple select question based on responses from Trading Standards departments completing the survey from 2019 to 2024.  From this, the top 5 public sector bodies are presented. Full breakdown for previous fiscal years can be found in previous reports at IP enforcement reports .

Public sector partners	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23	2023/24
Police	81%	68%	75%	65%	75%
Other Trading Standards Authorities	76%	66%	70%	64%	68%
Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs	62%	47%	52%	43%	53%
Companies House (CH)	41%	30%	43%	38%	46%
IPO Intelligence Hub	35%	33%	34%	43%	35%

Chart 7. Top five industry bodies engaged over the past five fiscal years.

This is a multiple select question based on responses from Trading Standards departments completing the survey for the past five fiscal years. The top five industry bodies are presented. Full breakdown for previous fiscal years can be found in previous reports at IP enforcement reports.

Industry partners	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23	2023/2024
Anti Counterfeiting Group	67%	63%	64%	62%	84%
REACT	47%	30%	35%	38%	45%
Other	19%	19%	25%	19%	25%
FACT	23%	15%	15%	16%	22%
International Federation of Spirits Producers	15%	6%	8%	8%	14%

Trading Standards Successes

These case studies highlight the important work done by Trading Standards Officers across the UK to tackle intellectual property crime.   They show the variety of investigations and prosecutions to protect both public and businesses from IP violations. 

Working closely with other law enforcement agencies and industry, Trading Standards Officers are vital in effectively dismantling IP crime networks. They use the Proceeds of Crime Act to recover hundreds of thousands of pounds from the IP crimes committed.  Their efforts not only penalise offenders but show a commitment to upholding IP laws, helping to protect public safety, the economy and fair business dealing.

Lancashire County Council

Adam Jeffreys ran an online counterfeit poster empire, producing and selling thousands of posters featuring football, music, toy and film designs protected by copyright.  The profits from his illegal operation were used to buy a large detached converted barn and a fancy car.

Lancashire County Council Trading Standards Service made test purchases of posters bearing James Bond, Game of Thrones, Tom and Jerry, Batman and Liverpool FC trade marks amongst others.  In October 2021, a warrant was served on his Colne manufacturing premises led to the seizure of printing equipment, printed posters and pre-printed customer labels.

Jeffreys pleaded guilty to running a fraudulent business manufacturing posters without licence from 2014 to 2021, and offences relating to trade mark and copyright breaches. On 19 December 2023, he was sentenced to 43 months in prison by Preston Crown Court.

On 22 March 2024, the case returned for a decision on the Proceeds of Crime Act confiscation order. Jeffreys’ benefit from crime was assessed at £1million, with £514,052.77 available for payment.  He was given three months to pay, with an extra five years in prison if he defaults. The funds have since been recovered and will be split between the Home Office, the courts and the local authority.

Counterfeit posters seized by Lancashire County Council Trading Standards

Rhondda Cynon Taf Council

Prosecuted For Selling Counterfeit Goods.

Darren Jones, a market trader from Beaufort, Ebbw Vale has been prosecuted by Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s Trading Standards department for selling counterfeit goods. 

Jones who ran a market stall in Mountain Ash outdoor market, pleaded guilty to 20 offences under the Trade Marks Act 1994 for having counterfeit fragrances, footwear, accessories, and homeware products with the intent to sell.

The investigation began after a complaint was made in November 2022 alleging the sale of counterfeit Gucci and Louis Vuitton goods being sold at the market.

In November 2022 Officers visited the outdoor market at Henry Street carpark and seized 165 items, including ornaments, perfume, pictures, slippers, belts, and wallets. The goods, which contained registered trade marks were of poor quality, generic packaging, and suspiciously low prices were confirmed as counterfeit.

The Magistrates stressed the seriousness of the offence and hope that Jones had learned what is and not acceptable in trading. Jones was given a 12-month community order with 10 activity days and a 60-day curfew from 8pm to 6am. He was ordered to pay £514 which will be deducted from his benefits. All goods were forfeitured and destroyed.

Suffolk County Council

John Williams, 72 from Great Cornard, Suffolk was sentenced to 16 months in prison (suspended for two years) and fined £7,500 after pleading guilty to selling, supplying and manufacturing counterfeit DVDs. 

Williams sold counterfeit DVDs of films and TV shows earning thousands of pounds. As part of the investigation, Suffolk Trading Standards seized over 40,000 fake DVDs from his home in October 2021 along with disk burners, computers, and packaging materials. 

Williams operated at film and TV fairs in London and had a network of customers in the UK and abroad, making up to £1,500 per fair. He pleaded guilty to offences under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, and the Trade Marks Act 1984.

In addition to the suspended sentence and fine, Ipswich Crown Court ordered Williams to pay £77,182 as part of a Proceeds of Crime Order and £43,870 in prosecution costs.

Suffolk Trading Standards began investigating after receiving a report of fake cult and classic DVDs being sold online. Tests confirmed them to be counterfeit. Titles examined included Wonder Woman 1984, Shazam, X Men Apocalypse and TV programmes The Strange World of Gurney Slade and Dial 999.

Williams’ counterfeiting activity contributed to the closure of Network Distributing Ltd, a company holding legitimately purchased copyright licencing rights to restore and remaster classic TV and films for DVD.  The company’s closure resulted in the loss of nearly 30 jobs.

Graham Crisp, Head of Suffolk Trading Standards said: 

Williams, and those that supply counterfeit discs, contributed to Network Distribution’s demise and have now actually limited the amount of cult TV and film available to purchase because these titles now remain in the archives and may never become available to the public.

We found correspondence from Williams where he said that Trading Standards were only concerned with large-scale counterfeiters connected to organised crime and did not have the resources or time to come after people like him – he was wrong. When we find evidence of criminal activity we will always act.

Councillor Andrew Reid, Suffolk County Council Cabinet Member for Public Health, Public Protection, & Communities, said: 

There is no such thing as a victimless crime and the greedy and selfish activities of this man contributed to the end of a company legitimately making cult films and TV shows available to the public.

I applaud Suffolk Trading Standards for its hard work in bringing this totally unacceptable operation to a close.

Counterfeit DVDs seized by Suffolk County Council Trading Standards

Oxfordshire County Council

Suspended prison sentence for counterfeit cigarette seller caught in Kidlington.

Micheal Addison, 63, was sentenced to 24 months in prison, suspended for 2 years, for selling counterfeit cigarettes and laundering money at Kidlington market.  The case was brought by Oxfordshire County Council’s Trading Standards team.

Addison pleaded guilty to twelve charges at an earlier hearing, including possessing fake and smuggled cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco in the course of business and money laundering. Brands included Richmond and Lambert and Butler cigarettes and Golden Virginia hand rolling tobacco.

In September 2023, he returned to Oxford Crown Court for sentencing. He was ordered to complete 300 hours of unpaid work and 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days. On a basis of plea, he accepted ‘converting criminal property’ by funnelling a sum of more than £155,000 through two Lloyds bank accounts in his name. 

He was caught in January 2022 at Kidlington market during a joint operation by Oxfordshire County Council’s Trading Standards team, the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (SEROCU) and Thames Valley Police.  Despite this he was caught again in February 2023 when his vehicle was stopped by police in Kidlington.

Jody Kerman, Oxfordshire County Council’s Head of Trading Standards, said: 

This was an example of partnership working at its best. Thanks to the help given by SEROCU and Thames Valley Police, we have been able to catch an offender targeting Oxfordshire, who otherwise may never have stopped.

While there is no safe level of smoking, there is also no way of knowing what is contained in unregulated and counterfeit cigarettes and tobacco products, which could put your health at increased risk.

That is why our trading standards team will continue to pursue those responsible and bring them to justice.

Confiscation proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act will be addressed at a future hearing.

Counterfeit tobacco products seized by Oxfordshire County Council Trading Standards

Salford City Council

A sweet or bitter taste? You decide.

Salford Trading Standards and Licensing team has seen an increase in complaints for IP matters linked to vaping products.

Despite service pressures and resource demands, the team continues to prioritise consumers and support legitimate businesses by targeting counterfeit and unsafe products.

Between April 2023 and March 2024 officers visited 23 premises discovering 8,440 counterfeit items.  Of these, 5,220 were vaping products suspected of breaching various confectionary related registered trade marks. Counterfeit and illicit vaping products have been an emerging issue in Salford. In total, officers have seized nearly 115,000, with many breaching intellectual property laws.

Brands include drinks such as Prime, Vimto, Fanta, Lucozade and Monster Energy, and confectionary products like Skittles, Drumstick, Refresher and Chewits. These brands have been active in supporting our investigations.

Justt Vape Ltd case study

In October 2023 Suraj Singh, trading as ‘Justt’ Vape Ltd, was sentenced to a 12-month suspended sentence after pleading guilty to 22 offences, including breaches of trade mark, copyright and safety laws. He was also ordered to pay £125,259.09 under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.  

The court heard that Salford Trading Standards received complaints about counterfeit Vampire Empire vape liquids.  Officers visited Singh’s company in November 2019 and seized over 15,000 e-liquids which were found to infringe trade mark and copyright legislation.   Some products featured a Disney genie logo from Aladdin without permission.

Despite the investigation, Singh continued his illegal activity.  In December 2019, officers seized more products including counterfeit Vampire Empire e-liquids, counterfeit Heisenberg flavour e-liquids and Justt Vape e-liquids again branded with the Disney genie logo.  At a follow up visit in June 2020, Officers seized another 41,492 bottles of e-liquids and associated packaging, which bore the infringing copyright of Disney, Golden Virginia, L&B, “Heisenberg” and “Pinkman”. Also seized on the day were 94 bottles of counterfeit hand sanitiser falsely branded as Andrex and Comfort. The seized sanitizers failed to comply with safety regulations and contained Methanol, a hazardous ingredient that can cause serious health issues.

In July 2020 a Restraint Order was placed on Singh’s assets to prevent the dissipation of criminal funds.  Despite attempts to lift the order, the court ruled to keep it in place until Singh could prove the legitimacy of his transactions.  Evidence showed continued breaches of copyright and illegal transactions.  

The court valued Singh’s criminal benefit at £592,407.10 of which he was ordered to pay £125,259.09, mostly from his frozen assets.

Illicit vape products seized by Salford City Council Trading Standards

Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council

Facebook Seller sentenced for selling fake goods.

In March 2024, Jessica Chilton from Brynithel was sentenced after pleading guilty to 7 offences related to the sale and advertising of counterfeit goods.

An investigation by Blaenau Gwent Trading Standards began after a complaint in October 2022 alleged Chilton was selling fake items from her home and through Facebook, including a group called Affordable Brands2. The goods included electrical items, jewellery, clothing, and earphones.

Despite being warned by Trading Standards a year earlier, Chilton continued to sell fake goods. In November 2022, a warrant was executed at her home, where large quantities of counterfeit items were found, including Nike, Adidas, Balenciaga, Gucci, and Chanel products.

Chilton admitted she sold the items to make money but claimed she didn’t fully understand the consequences. The court emphasized the seriousness of selling counterfeit items, which harm both consumers and legitimate businesses.

Chilton received a 12-month community order with 160 hours of unpaid work, a £114 victim surcharge, and ordered to pay £3,000 towards investigation costs. The sale of fake goods through sites such as Facebook creates unfair competition to genuine businesses and causes damage to brand holders. This leads to the loss of jobs in the industry. Many counterfeit goods can present a safety risk to consumers with no vigorous safety checks that genuine products are subjected to during the manufacturing process. Trading Standards investigations serve to protect the public and legitimate businesses by ensuring that fake products are removed from sites and the sellers punished accordingly.

Counterfeit goods seized by Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council Trading Standards

Second Facebook Seller sentenced for selling fake goods

A female was sentenced at Cwmbran Magistrates Court in August 2023 after pleading guilty to 4 offences relating to the sale and advertising of counterfeit goods.

Prosecutor Hayley Hawkins told the Court that the defendant had been investigated by Blaenau Gwent CBC Trading Standards following a complaint received in March 2022. The investigations showed that the defendant was advertising and selling counterfeit goods through the private Facebook group RLM Deals which had over 1600 members. The evidence showed that the defendant was responsible for purchasing the items from UK and foreign suppliers. She was also taking orders from customers and arranging for delivery.

The counterfeit goods being sold included clothing, trainers, bags, aftershaves, perfumes and jewellery. Other accessories bore fake branding such as Nike, Adidas, North Face, Stone Island, Hugo Boss, Rolex and Ugg.

A warrant was executed on 13 July 2022 at the defendant’s home address where counterfeit goods were found ready to be sent to customers. Further forensic examinations of the defendant’s mobile phone showed that the business was organised and extensive with many customers all over the UK.

The defendant received 240 hours of unpaid work which was reduced to 160 hours for an early plea. She was also ordered to pay a victim Surcharge of £114 and costs of £1,200.00.

The Magistrates noted the severity of the offences and said that they passed the custodial threshold. Due to the defendant’s previous good character, being a single parent to young children and the early guilty plea, a community order would be given. The hours must be completed in 12 months and the financial penalty will be paid at £40 per month.

Counterfeit football kits available for sale online by RLM deals and seized by Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council Trading Standards

Shared Regulatory Services (Bridgend County Borough, Cardiff & Vale of Glamorgan)

Five members of an organised crime group selling illicit tobacco jailed in South Wales.

The final member of a South Wales Organised Crime Group (OCG) has been sentenced to four years imprisonment in July 2024 at Swansea Crown Court. The OCG sold illegal tobacco, cigarettes and Nitrous Oxide while money-laundering more than £1.5m.

Serhang Ahmadi, was sentenced later than the other ten members of the gang, due to an additional charge of witness intimidation relating to the case. This resulted in a four-day trial but Ahmadi was found not guilty of this charge. 

With this final sentence, the OCG was sentenced to a total of 29 years imprisonment with a further 9 years given in suspended sentences. This was for carrying out a ‘business for a fraudulent purpose’ to the value of £1.8 million between September 2013, until February 2022.

In the original fraud trial, Ahmadi pleaded guilty to the offence on 15 November 2023, seven days after the trial began.

During the investigation, officers seized £600,000 of illegal tobacco, based on market cost, along with £12,500 worth of Nitrous Oxide cannisters.

Based on the evidence, a conservative estimate of the daily takings of each store involved was more than £1,000. This figure can be taken from messages between defendants and written records kept. If the figure of £1,000 per day is used against the number of stores and the time, they were selling the total value of the fraud would be around £3,843,000.00.

The operation against the gang began in February 2020, following intelligence that several shops across the SRS region were selling illegal tobacco and Nitrous Oxide. Significant amounts of cigarettes and tobacco were seized initially, but the shops restock quickly, and continued to sell to the local community, including children.

The gang used the shops as a front, appearing to sell genuine products and other legitimate produce. While in fact, an intricate operation was being carried out with flats above the shops and other spaces used to hide the illegal tobacco.

Some of the illegal tobacco was stored in self storage units or in the defendant’s homes. It was transported in cars with blacked out windows to the shops and flats above late at night or early hours of the morning.

The illegal tobacco was often stored in large, concealed spaces in the shops or the flats. Powerful magnets were used to unlock these spaces which were invisible to the human eye and found by sniffer dogs and by breaking through walls.

Other techniques the gang used to transport their products included electric winches and plastic tubes linking the shop with the flat above. Tobacco was passed down a tube whenever a customer made a purchase.

Helen Picton, Head of shared Regulatory Services said: 

Searches and test purchases at all seven shops resulted in £600,000 of illegal tobacco taken off the streets of South Wales. This is a mere fraction of the criminality in this case, as it doesn’t consider any cigarettes or tobacco that had been sold by the criminal gang.

Although they thought they were operating with impunity, what they didn’t know is that they were being monitored and as the two trials showed, there was overwhelming evidence for the juries to find them guilty of these offences. It was clear from the investigation that they believed they were entitled to carry out their fraudulent business and showed little remorse.

Illegal tobacco does great harm in the community. Its cheapness and ease of supply are particularly attractive to young people and others on lower incomes, and it eliminates the price incentive for existing smokers to quit the habit. I’m delighted to see the successful conclusion of this long and extended investigation. Offenders need to know that they will face consequences if they choose to deal in these illegal products.

Sergeant Jake Rollnick from South Wales Police said:

Officers from Cardiff and Vale Neighbourhood Policing Teams worked closely alongside the Shared Regulatory Services and other government agencies in bringing these offenders to justice over a period of 18 months. It consisted of multiple warrants and intervention and just goes to show what we can achieve in partnership.

As part of this operation:

• 41 POCCA Search Warrants were executed in a period of 5 months
• 23 arrests were made (some for re-offending whilst on bail)
• 12 defendants remanded into custody with 57 subsequent bail applications and court hearings

Combine that with over 240 witnesses, over 320 statements and 1180 exhibits, this is the biggest case of its kind in South Wales.  The tobacco, vape and nitrous oxide seizures were worth more than £1,500,000.00. Restraints are in place for all the known assets.

A huge amount of actionable intelligence was gathered and shared with multi agencies.  This case highlighted the fact for the need of a multi-agency dedicated operation as we could not have done this operation by ourselves. This approach resulted in major disruption to the OCG, closed 5 main premises and later a further 3 shops. We seized a total of £64,775.00 in cash and £200,000.00 (£60,000.00 in scrap value) of gold jewellery.

This will send a clear message to criminals that a multi-agency approach will result in a full and thorough investigation and subsequent prosecution.