LOST MARY, the UK’s market-leading vape brand, is calling on retailers to remain vigilant against the threat of counterfeit vaping products across the market, and reminding adult users of the potential risks these substandard products pose.
As regulatory changes reshape the UK vaping sector and enforcement on illicit products intensifies, illegal brands face greater barriers. This has prompted bad actors to adapt their approach, with a high likelihood for counterfeits to become increasingly widespread.
Illicit operators are exploiting the reputation of established brands, unlawfully using trusted brand names alongside replicated product designs and packaging to pass off counterfeits as legitimate products to retailers and unsuspecting consumers.
“These counterfeit products do not meet the rigorous quality and safety standards of genuine products.
"They are likely to contain substandard components, leading to a poor user experience and potential health and safety risks for customers who unknowingly purchase them, while also damaging consumer trust, retailer reputation, and market integrity”, a LOST MARY spokesperson warned.
Identifying Counterfeit Vapes
Counterfeit products are often identified through post-purchase customer complaints. Here, retailers and consumers should be alert to product quality issues such as unusual taste, crackling sounds during use, or a burnt plastic smell, as key indicators.
Prior to sale, retailers can verify product authenticity using online tools provided by individual brands, many of which have unique security codes or QR codes on their packaging for this purpose. Consumers are also encouraged to verify products to ensure they are genuine.
If the verification page is not hosted on the brand’s official website domain, the product is highly likely to be counterfeit. Other red flags include invalid pages, links that lead to fake domains, and QR codes that show they have been checked multiple times or verified in different countries.
Additionally, there are several packaging-related indicators helping retailers identify counterfeits. These include:
- Spelling errors or inconsistent spacing between words
- Off-centre text or misaligned QR code
- Font differences compared with a genuine product, even if slight
- Differences in print quality or resolution compared with a genuine product. These can be subtle
- Missing a clearly printed batch number
- Absence of the embossed triangle on the nicotine warning on the back
Retailer Guidance
To reduce the risk of stocking counterfeit products, LOST MARY recommends sourcing products exclusively from authorised distributors and reputable wholesale channels, and taking steps to ensure only genuine products are stocked.
Retailers can verify the authenticity of LOST MARY products by entering the 18-digit security code, located on the packaging of individual units, mid-size packs, or carton boxes, using the brand’s official online verification service, or by revealing and scanning the QR code.
LOST MARY’s Zero-Tolerance Policy“Counterfeit products are unregulated, bypassing safeguards designed to protect consumers, and can contain unknown substances.
“We operate a zero-tolerance policy toward counterfeit products, actively investigating suspected activity across the supply chain and working with authorities to take decisive action – protecting our intellectual property rights and supporting responsible retailing standards across the industry”, a LOST MARY spokesperson said.
Reporting Suspected Counterfeit Products
Retailers who suspect products may be counterfeits are encouraged to report them.
If you are aware of such LOST MARY-branded products, please report them via the online form at www.lostmary.com/report-counterfeit or contact legal@lostmary.com so the brand can investigate and take measures against those responsible.