November 13, 2013: To protect its customers from the menace of counterfeit spares, Tata Motors has launched a systematic multi-pronged campaign against the sale of fake spare parts, using the Tata Genuine Parts (TGP) brand name.
As part of its ongoing enforcement campaign, the company has launched nationwide raids to expose the burgeoning spurious spare parts business. So far, Tata Motors says it has conducted eight successful raids in the Delhi-NCR area, and around 70 raids across the country since June 2013 on those who were predominantly selling counterfeit TGP.
The enforcement team including the IPR enforcement and copyrights protection agencies and the Tata Motors' TGP team and legal team have been working closely to identify both manufacturing and selling outlets / locations of counterfeit spares and packaging centres, across major cities and trade hubs of India.
Based on complaints from Tata Motors' sources, the Delhi Police launched raid operations against violators at the following locations in Delhi:
1. Krishna Labels and Praveen Motors, Guru Nanak Market, Kashmere Gate in June 2013
2. Sarai Rohilla - Vardon House- Padam Nagar in August 2013
3. Manufacturing unit at D49- Bhajanpura, Delhi in August 2013
4. Nawada Village - Uttam Nagar in September 2013
5. APJ Polyflex- Azadpur in October 2013
6. Lamba International, Bada Bazaar, Kashmere Gate in October 2013
7. Manufacturing unit at 2820/23, Gurunanak Market, Kashmere Gate in October 2013.
8. Manufacturing unit at 774, Chabi Ganj, Kashmere Gate in October 2013
The high-consumption driven parts or those with low technology inputs are the ones most commonly duplicated. These include clutch parts, air / oil / fuel filters, belts, hoses, ball joints, seals, suspension items like liners and brake pads, gear parts, syncrocone, gaskets. For these, counterfeit packaging, labels and various other fast moving parts were being manufactured and distributed to the market from these locations.
According to Rajesh Bagga, vice-president - Legal, Tata Motors, "The use of spurious parts poses a safety risk to consumers. Data shows that over 50 percent of spares for all popular brands sold in the market are fake and unreliable. Studies also show that 70 percent of consumers opt for fake spares instead of visiting authorised service centres, once the warranty period on the vehicle has expired. Customer awareness is the key to curb sale of counterfeit products, prompting Tata Motors to generate countrywide awareness campaigns about safety risks posed by spurious / counterfeit spare parts."
The TGP team has launched a series of pilfer-proof plastic packaging for gear and differential parts as well as lazer marking with Tata Logo, a slew of security enriched packaging stickers and labels and the Tata Dhaal hologram on the packaging, as identification aids to provide customers with additional assurance when they buy Tata Motors spares. The company has begun regular mechanic and retailer meets and various outreach programs through its spare parts distributors, educating the influencers and end customers on the various initiatives taken by the company to control the counterfeit parts.