LA City Attorney Warns Holiday Shoppers About Dangers Of Counterfeit, Recalled Products
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — With less than a month until Christmas, Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer has a warning for holiday shoppers — beware of counterfeit and recalled products.
"It's actually illegal to sell counterfeit goods," District Attorney Jackie Lacey said. "Counterfeit goods are, in general, substandard."
Showing off a table of items ranging from make up and toys to jewelry and household items, Feuer and District Attorney Jackie Lacey warned the public of the dangers posed by fake products.
"Brand names that you would find in stores in downtown L.A., but some of them have chemicals that have no business being anywhere on your body, let alone on your face," Capt. Lillian Carranza, of the Los Angeles Police Department, said. "And some have tested positive for animal feces."
Feuer said his office was also confronting recalled merchandise after being able to purchase a recalled bike helmet — due to a faulty buckle — on Walmart's website.
"Now we alerted Walmart to the presence of this item on its website and the fact that it had been recalled," Feuer said. "And it appears that Walmart has taken this helmet off of its website for sale. We had sent Walmart a cease and desist order."
Tonight, Walmart released a statement that said in part:
"An item identified in City Attorney Feuer's letter was not sold by Walmart.com, but by a third party marketplace seller. It is against our policy for a seller to offer any recalled products on our platform. The item has been removed, and the seller has been notified."
Feuer and Lacey offered a few tips on how people can protect themselves from counterfeit and recalled items:
- Consider buying from a brick-and-mortar store, or directly from a manufacturer.
- Check to make sure all safety labels are legitimate ones.
- If the price of an item seems too good to be true, it probably is.
- Examine the product by looking for poorly printed packaging, missing stickers or trademarks and misspelled or abnormally large logos.
To verify whether a product has been recalled or not, check the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's website.
