Electricians beware “Fake” wiring guides readily available

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Electricians are being warned that fake wiring guides are being sold on ebay and across the internet with the IET uncovering a shipment of 800 bogus guides being smuggled into Dover from Latvia.

Many of the fake books are imported from China and India and are usually sold online.

The regulations are the industry standard and the IET is now placing a hologram on its  most popular guides in a bid to beat the fakers the genuine books can be bought for around £85.

Geoff Cronshaw, Chief Electrical Engineer at the IET said: “Ensuring that genuine copies of IET publications are being used by electrical professionals is imperative in order that correct standards are used to protect the public and those working in the industry from injury and fatality.

“The new measures that IET has put in place will help electrical professionals to identify genuine copies of new IET publications much more easily and stem the flow of counterfeit materials coming on to the publications market.

“My advice to people looking to buy a copy of any IET publication would be to buy it directly from the IET if they are in any doubt about the supplier they are making a purchase from, or to consult the IET’s list of validated suppliers in the UK.

Following the discovery of a shipment of counterfeit Wiring Regulations, the IET are working with worldwide customs authorities and various law enforcement agencies based in countries such as China and India to stop the shipment of counterfeit goods, preventing their sale and distribution.

Please let us know if you see any suspicious looking IET products and we will, where appropriate, take legal action to prevent counterfeiting. We want to protect our brand and our customers so we’re working hard to track down websites and online auctions that we believe are selling counterfeit IET products.

The production and purchase of fake publications is compromising the safety of the electrical industry and potentially putting people at risk of fire, serious injury or even death. These counterfeit publications, in such cases where pages are missing or printed information has been corrupted, give an incomplete picture which could lead to errors and dangerous practices.

Whilst we would like to help the victims of counterfeiting, we’re not able to reimburse money used to purchase infringing goods since such goods were not bought from us nor do we assist with the resolution of disputes, including assistance with PayPal or credit card refunds. However, by finding counterfeiters and taking legal action against them, we’re doing our part since many people do not understand the global ramifications of counterfeiting, or the cycle of abuse they are supporting when purchasing counterfeit goods.

Counterfeiters are criminals who impact on the economy by not paying taxes, and exploit consumers, businesses and their workers alike so any information regarding counterfeiting is extremely valuable to us.

Amendment 3 to BS 7671:2008
To discourage counterfeiting and help customers to recognise genuine copies of the IET Wiring Regulations, the IET has placed a hologram on the inside front cover of three of its new titles:

• BS 7671:2008+A3:2015
• On-Site Guide to BS 7671:2008+A3:2015
• Guidance Note 3, 7th Edition

The hologram contains the IET logo in large print and small and the word “GENUINE”, as well as a number of hidden measures, including text that is visible with a magnifying glass.  If you have any concerns over the authenticity of your copy, please call customer services on +44 (0) 1438 767 328 for further help.