Pandora has urged shoppers to be alert of fake websites and sellers this Black Friday and festive season, as a mother is scammed out of her savings while buying Christmas presents for her daughter.
Mum Thirza O'Boyle took to social media to share her experience of being duped out of £61.80 she had saved up by a scam website posing as the official Pandora website. The imitation website advertised discounted jewellery that appeared to be legitimately Pandora-branded. Research from Pandora reveals nearly one in five Brits (17%) have been duped by fake jewellery online.
Further investigation by Pandora also found counterfeit jewellery is rife on TikTok Shop with accounts promoting imitation Pandora products for as little as £5. One TikTok video promoting this jewellery had over 1.2M views.
A spokesperson for Pandora said: "Unfortunately, we face the challenge of counterfeiters copying our designs and violating our brand. We do not tolerate this and we operate an anti-counterfeiting programme against manufacturers and distributors of Pandora counterfeit products. We remove hundreds of thousands of fake listings, websites and social media posts every year.
“We are concerned by the recent trend on TikTok of accounts promoting fake Pandora products, especially at this time of year where people spend their hard-earned savings buying gifts for loved ones. We urge all users to be aware these are not real Pandora products and that these are classed as counterfeit items which are illegal under copyright infringement laws.
“If you do purchase one of these items, most likely what will arrive will be made from cheap quality materials that do not offer any longevity or guarantee, as real Pandora products would. You could potentially be putting yourself at risk of skin reactions as there is no way to tell what materials the jewellery is made from.
“Don’t fall victim to these too good to be true offers.”
A TikTok spokesperson said: "Fake or unauthorised replicas of an authentic product are forbidden on TikTok Shop. We make this absolutely clear in our policies, which all Merchants must adhere to. We encourage our Community and brands to report cases of counterfeits or intellectual property violations if they find them on our platform, and we remove such cases when found."
Pandora urges customers to only shop in their stores, through authorised merchandisers or via the official Pandora website to avoid falling victim: https://uk.pandora.net/en/charms-bracelets/bracelets/
An expert’s guide to spotting counterfeit jewellery
Does it have the correct hallmarks?
Nicholas Golding from Pandora UK explains: “First of all, look for any hallmark engraving somewhere on the piece of jewellery. Hallmarks are a set of marks applied to articles of precious metals, the presence of which shows that the item meets the legal standards of purity. They can also tell you who the maker is and where the jewellery was hallmarked.
“By law, in the UK any jewellery over the minimum weight which is claimed to be gold, silver, platinum, or palladium, must have a hallmark stating its purity and metal type. The UK Assay Offices independently check and hallmark jewellery to protect consumers.
“If in doubt, research the hallmark number you spot online to learn more about the purity and provenance of the jewellery.”
Does it come with an authenticity certification?
“Check that there is an authenticity certification with any jewellery with diamonds, like engagement rings,” says Nicholas Golding. “Any items that claim to have real diamonds should have documentation from an independent agency such as the IGI, EGL and GIA, which evaluates and grades the stone.”
Check for brand inaccuracies
According to Nicholas Golding: “When you are buying anything branded, check that the font, spelling, logo and colouring on the jewellery are all completely consistent with the brand. Inspect images of other jewellery on the brand’s official page to help see if you can identify slip-ups on counterfeit pieces. It can be as minor as one letter that is slightly misshapen.”
Is the price realistic?
Nicholas Golding recommends checking the pricing against other similar items online: “If it is dramatically cheaper than all other similar pieces, chances are something may well be amiss,” he says. “Extremely cheap jewellery purporting to be precious metals and gemstones should ring alarm bells.”
Go to trusted sellers
“Go to a reputable, trusted seller (the brand directly or an authorised seller),” explains Nicholas Golding. “If it is not possible to get the exact item you want directly, for instance if an item is discontinued, and your only option is to buy it second-hand, you could take the jewellery to an independent jewellery evaluator to verify its authenticity.”
A guide to ensure you’re buying real Pandora-branded jewellery
Nicholas Golding also explains how to spot a fake Pandora piece:
Check for maker's mark and Brexit-updated hallmarks
Nicholas Golding suggests looking out for the Pandora maker’s mark, which is engraved on all Pandora jewellery. “Before 1st January 2021 this was just ‘ALE’, which are the initials of Algot Enevoldsen, the father of Pandora's founder Per Enevoldsen. However, in the wake of Brexit you may now see a new maker's mark on Pandora jewellery being sold in Great Britain, being ‘PJ’ inside a square in addition to ‘ALE’.”
“Additionally, there should be a crown on top of the ‘O’ in the Pandora logo on any piece of jewellery. It is these small touches that counterfeit jewellery is often missing.”
“All new Pandora jewellery sold in Great Britain meets current British hallmarking rules, so unless the metal is under a certain weight, the items will now be accompanied by post-Brexit hallmarks – which should include a castle mark from the Assay Office.”
If buying from the Pandora Brilliance range, does it come with the right certificate?
“If purchasing from the Pandora Brilliance range, there should be an accompanying Pandora Brilliance Certificate which warrants the size and quality of each diamond,” says Nicholas Golding. “Without this, you could be looking at a counterfeit piece of jewellery.”
What to do if you’ve fallen victim to a fake item
Seek a refund
Nicholas Golding offers some advice: “If you discover that you have bought a counterfeit item, you may well have a legal right to a refund under consumer protection legislation and you should seek a refund from the seller. However, if the seller is knowingly breaking the law by selling counterfeits, they may not respect your consumer rights either.”
Consider using a credit card when online shopping
“You could consider using a credit card responsibly when making high value purchases. Credit card purchases of goods sold for more than £100 are protected under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. You can make a claim against your credit provider if things go wrong, so you have a higher chance of recouping the money when this protection applies. However, if you have any suspicion that the jewellery you are buying may be counterfeit, you should not proceed with the purchase.”
Report it
“In the UK, you can report any counterfeit sellers to the Trading Standards or Action Fraud (for online sellers) who can take legal action against the seller. You can find out more about how to do this at Citizens Advice."
