The saying, “If it’s too good to be true, it usually is.” should come to mind when you find electrical products that are far below competitor prices. But electrical products are uniquely hazardous when impersonated. They have not undergone testing by an independent laboratory, likely do not comply with industry safety requirements, and since its origin is often unknown, its manufacturer isn’t held accountable for the potentially deadly results. Learn what to look for and help protect yourself and your loved ones from fires or injuries associated with counterfeit products.
What to Look for:
- Use established vendors who purchase their goods from legitimate distributors and genuine manufacturers.
- Read the packaging and labels carefully. Text should be free of grammatical errors and should not contain conflicting information
- Packaging should contain the name and contact information of the manufacturer.
- Avoid unknown brands and products that do not display any brand affiliation.
- Do your research. Organizations such as the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), CSA Group, and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) provide information about product recalls, including those related to counterfeiting, on their websites.
