A construction material supplier and one of its directors were convicted and each fined $25,000 today (September 8) at Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts for supplying and possessing for sale paints and coatings with false trade descriptions applied, in contravention of the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (TDO). About 325 litres of paints and coatings involved in the case with false claims of origin were also confiscated.
Hong Kong Customs received information in mid-last year alleging that some paints and coatings sold at a construction material supplier were suspected to be bearing false descriptions of the place of manufacture. A follow-up investigation revealed that a type of paint and two types of coatings were labelled as manufactured by a company in the US, but they were in fact manufactured in Canada and China, which was contrary to the claim. Customs took immediate action and seized a batch of paints and coatings with suspected false claims of origin at the company involved.
Customs reminds traders to comply with the requirements of the TDO and consumers to purchase at reputable shops.
Under the TDO, any person who supplies goods with a false trade description in the course of trade or business, or is in possession of any goods for sale with a false trade description, commits an offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for five years.
Members of the public may report any suspected violations of the TDO to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk).
Ends/Wednesday, September 8, 2021
