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Frozen toys included in thousands of dangerous and counterfeit goods seized at Dover by trading standards

Thousands of dangerous and counterfeit goods have been seized by trading standards officers in a huge consignment at Dover.

Among the 5,470 items taken were 1,960 toys, including 426 character dolls from the blockbuster Disney film Frozen - intended for the Christmas toy market.

Also captured were 3,000 sets of Christmas lights which were not properly insulated and could have caused electric shocks.

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The haul included goods relating to the film Frozen and Christmas lights that can shock
The haul included goods relating to the film Frozen and Christmas lights that can shock

The rest of the consignment of nearly 170,000 items were sent back to China after discussions with the importer.

It comes after Border Force officers stopped a lorry and container being unloaded from the same ship.

KCC trading standards manager Mark Rolfe said the seizure was one of the biggest hauls ever confiscated.

He added: "Not surprisingly, it was a very time-consuming task for our officers to go through the consignments and examine samples of every product.”

The confiscated items included:

  • 426 “Frozen” dolls, confirmed by Disney as counterfeit
  • 480 mini laser stage lighting sets, which had no traceability details and were likely to fail safety requirements
  • 1,440 Peppa Pig look puffer balls, which contravened trademarks, bore no details of EU manufacturer or EU representative, were leaking an unidentified chemical and were unlikely to pass any safety examination

A total of 164,400 other products were rejected for non-conformities with EU directives, including 135,924 toys destined for children’s Christmas stockings.

Among the rejected items were 160 radio-controlled helicopters which had no manufacturer details on the enclosed plug and the pins on the plug were bent.

Most of the rejected items carried no traceability markings and, when asked, the importer was unable to provide technical documentation showing they conformed to EU safety legislation.

A consignment of goods was seized at Dover
A consignment of goods was seized at Dover

They included 7,776 Rock battle tops; 1,299 Zha Jiao Gai Qian watch repairers, which raised also concerns over the paint used on the handle; 125,467 Webrahmen sets (little bands that link together to make wrist bands); 2,998 battery-operated Xmas lights; 1,561 Modern Time dolls; 5,241 pairs of earrings; 1,000 music speakers; 7,200 Christmas hats with lights; and 1,440 glasses with enclosed lights, 306 plastic Christmas trees and 6,720 torches.

Mr Rolfe added: “After inspecting all the items and carrying out necessary tests, some of them, such as gloves, vanity cases, bracelets and picture frames, were allowed into the EU.

“Some of the items we seized were clearly potentially dangerous and likely to be aimed at the Christmas retail market.

"We are pleased that we were able to protect the public from these shoddy goods and prevent any injuries they might have caused.

This Princess Anna toy was among the Frozen toys seized in the Chinese consignment
This Princess Anna toy was among the Frozen toys seized in the Chinese consignment

"They may or may not have been dangerous but without the necessary technical documentation my officers are unable to properly assess their safety and as such the goods are not permitted entry for free circulation within the EU”.

“Either way, they will not be entering the UK for sale here.”

“Some of the items we seized were clearly potentially dangerous and likely to be aimed at the Christmas retail market" - Mark Rolfe

Paul Morgan, Director of Border Force South East and Europe said: “Border Force is determined to prevent counterfeiting and we have officers working 24 hours a day at ports, airports and mail sorting centres identifying fake goods before they reach the streets.

“Counterfeit goods cause damage to legitimate businesses and traders and they leave customers out of pocket with inferior and possibly dangerous products."

“We will continue to work closely with Kent Trading Standards and the public can play their part in disrupting the trade by ensuring they only buy from genuine retailers.”

Video: Counterfeit goods seized

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