Appalled at the number of fakes allowed by Gumtree

[DJMC]

I don't get it? Ebay and other sites try to police counterfeit watches being sold, but on Gumtree.com if you search for "watch" nationally you come up with hundreds if not thousands of high end fakes being advertised blatantly, with seller's phone numbers and their boasts that they have "many Rolex to choose from." Prices from £35 for a Sub or Daytona. There are around 600 ads for fake Rolexes alone at present!

I don't mean homage watches, I mean copies labelled Rolex; Cartier; Hublot; Breitling; etc, etc.

Surely the Police have the easiest job of phoning these criminals, arranging a meet to "buy a watch", and then nicking them?

Am I missing something?

Why am I concerned? Well, as the victim of an online ad scam I hate seeing these scum succeed with no barriers put in place. Why should these people get away with trading on the prestigious names of some of the world's top watch makers?

Plus, when idly looking for watches, I have to scour through a page full of fakes to find just one real one for sale!

Okay, okay, I could just turn the other cheek and veto the site but it gets my goat!

[DJMC]

Dominic H said:

David, I think the over stretched, under resourced Police have more pressing matters than pursuing dodgy sellers on Gumtree.

If should be obvious by the price point that these are not the genuine article....

Having bought a genuine £700 Yamaha saxophone for £50, and a couple of genuine watches for 40-50% of their market value, albeit cheapies, there are some bargains to be had in the small ads.

Take for example: https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=ca...

At £2000 this isn't a fake, but it can't be genuine... or can it? What year I ask? 1997. OK, so it's a fake for sure and the guy IS trying to con someone who doesn't know their Rolexes. So, not so obvious to the uninitiated?

[DJMC]

It's not so bad with Saxophones, although there are some obvious Selmer clones, but my point is that most here know what to look for, others in the "my first Rolex" community may not, and you may say they deserve to be conned if they think a BLNR will be £2000.

BUT that doesn't excuse the criminals, nor Gumtree, nor the authorities, for letting this happen.

You may be safe with your expert knowledge but I'm looking at the broader picture.

[DJMC]

Dominic H said:

I wouldn't suggest that anyone deserves to be conned out of £2000 for a fake Rolex. I would hope that any prospective buyer does their homework and research. I regularly take calls from people wanting advice on all manners of watch/diamond matters. If my advice helps someone avoid being conned, that's great.

I agree completely that this shouldn't be happening. I'm sure that ebay/gumtree have some responsibility to ensure that manufacturers copyrights are not infringed, and fake watches are not mis-represented. I'm sure that misleading posts/ads can be reported.

I have experience with watches, from many years of buying and selling. That said, I know nothing about the market for Yamaha/Selmer saxophones, so would probably ask for help to buy.

The bottom line is 'buyer beware', doubly so when dealing online, remotely with an unseen item one has little knowledge on.

It's far far easier for you to spot a fake watch Dom, being in the trade, and of course buyers would be daft to spend £2000 without checking. But it's easier still if they can't be tempted by ads specifically designed to con.

[DJMC]

By the way, thanks for your help with the Cartier for my wife Dom. As you'll have seen from the debacle that is my other thread, she found a "bargain" Tank in the end - from a retailer. Always a pleasure chatting with you.

[DJMC]

sjg said:

Rolex would much prefer that anyone after one of their watches goes to one of their authorized dealers. What incentive is there for them to help clean up and legitimize the unofficial secondhand market? Why would they want someone to think that they can pay a 4-figure sum to someone on gumtree and get a legit watch?

I'm sure their efforts are better spent shutting down the fake factories in China rather than going after dodgy Bob on Gumtree.

But if there were no "dodgy Bobs" the factories would have nobody to supply?

There's little our police can do about what goes on in China, only what happens here.

I wonder what Rolex do about the factories? Just ignore them?