Navitron Counterfeit Solar Panels.

[Ivan]

Today we've learnt of another counterfeiting incident - where a customer has been sold an inferior panel under the pretense that it was a Navitron panel. We only discovered because the customer had telephoned Navitron in frustration having had trouble with his supplier, only to find out that the Navitron SFB panel ISN'T available in an 18-tube version.

Obviously, Navitron take this kind of thing very seriously. Indeed, so does the law. Counterfeiting is a criminal offence usually leading to imprisonment, and as such is dealt with by police rather than the civil courts.


How to Spot Counterfeit Panels
We've recently heard of a few cases of customers receiving counterfeit Navitron Solar Panels. This is an issue that we take very seriously, and we take action against anyone supplying counterfeits. If you have any doubt over your panel, you can use the tips below to help identify your Navitron panel.

All SFB type Navitron panels have been manufactured with three unique features:


An aluminium name plate, attached with rivets should be present at the top righthand corner of the uppermost face of the manifold located above the solar tubes. The plate bears the Navitron logo in colour.


A metallic grey sticker should be present in the bottom left hand corner of the uppermost face of the manifold (located above the solar tubes). This sticker has your panel's unique serial number written under the Navitron name, on the second line. This sticker also has technical details of the panel, and the Navitron address.


Finally, each tube should have the Navitron logo etched into  the black selective coating inside the glass itself. This is currently a unique feature in the UK market, and is virtually impossible for a UK counterfeiter to copy.

If you have any doubts about the authenticity of your Navitron panel, please feel free to contact us, with details of your panel and your supplier and we will verify it for you.

Please note.

    * If you purchased your panel directly from Navitron, then it will definitely be authentic.

    * These authentication features may not be present on Navitron non-heatpipe panels, Slimline panels, or Single walled tube panels - please contact us for further information

[dhaslam]

It is a valuable lesson for them.  When counterfeiting bank notes for example it is better to stick with  fives and tens  etc rather than going for sevens  and eights, at least in the beginning.

[martin]

good thought......or the original nine-bob note! (known as a Mandelson I believe!)

[NickW]

good thought......or the original nine-bob note! (known as a Mandelson I believe!)

Sounds as bent as a dogs back leg

[Mike N.]

Presumably there is a date on which these features started. None of my panels have any but as I picked them up personally from Oakham I'm reasonably confident that they are genuine.

Mike

[kristen]

I see this as a sign of your success Ivan, well done . I'm sorry about the hassle of having to waste time, energy and money pursuing the blighters though

[insolare]

I see this as a sign of your success Ivan, well done . I'm sorry about the hassle of having to waste time, energy and money pursuing the blighters though

I agree. Even though it's a pain and downright illegal, it is the ultimate form of flattery.

[MR GUS]

What is the traceability Ivan, my commiserations by the way. I used to track down counterfeiters years ago in HK it's a costly bind with litle or no comeback, & the world has grown considerably since then.
Perhaps with each sale there ought to be a verification & activation no for each sale that can for the price of a phonecall be traced, place this facility in your own items & on the website with a confirmation call for each activation, verifying that it is from a legitimate supplier, advertise this on your own site so it's visible & known about?
cheap & potentially offputting to dodgey sellers, then if they sell their kit (eg upgrade) it can be verified as genuine & tracked to its new home as it were with new owner details logged on, also ideal for customer calls to check alls well (with no hard sell, advice & spares availability) / hand holding that backs you up in the customers mind as worth recommending & extolling the virtues of.
just a rough thought, but when counterfeiters start you need to be ready.
also a VERY UP TO DATE list of valid dealers.

[David]

Perhaps with each sale there ought to be a verification & activation no for each sale that can for the price of a phonecall be traced, place this facility in your own items & on the website with a confirmation call for each activation, verifying that it is from a legitimate supplier, advertise this on your own site so it's visible & known about?
cheap & potentially offputting to dodgey sellers, then if they sell their kit (eg upgrade) it can be verified as genuine & tracked to its new home as it were with new owner details logged on, also ideal for customer calls to check alls well (with no hard sell, advice & spares availability) / hand holding that backs you up in the customers mind as worth recommending & extolling the virtues of.

If such a system had been in force when I bought my solar panel I would have taken my money elsewhere. Once a company have sold something to me then it is none of their da**ed business what I do with it, that is capitalism and politicians tell us we are all in favour of that. Trying to tie those who bought their software up in legalistic knots has driven an increasing number of people away from Microsoft for both operating systems and applications.

I noticed the Navitron stencils when installing my tubes, hadn't noticed them before, I think it a nice touch. I did notice the name panel, I usually remove such advertising, but did not because I was happy to advertise the company. Would you seek to restrict me from removing this advertising from **MY** solar panel? Data plate? Yes I have a vague idea there is one, can't be bothered to look at the moment. I assume Navitron sold me a "genuine" panel.

The sensible thing to do with counterfeiters is to be flattered and keep an eye on how much business they are abstracting. If it becomes too much then it is time for action, provided it is cost effective. For example a small claim against an installer for passing off other equipment may be suitably cost-effective. The difference between the cost of "authentic" Navitron equipment and A N Other's equipment can't be huge and a few small claims would presumably tilt the balance and get the message out. Publicity, which is what this thread is, is also an excellent idea.

Lastly there are questions which we are unlikely to be told the answer to, but are still worth raising. Has an installer, or installers, been trying to beat Navitron's "trade" prices down and gone elsewhere when they couldn't? Have deliveries been slow and some people installed other panels in order to get promised installations done? While neither are an acceptable excuse for passing other equipment off as having come from Navitron I could imagine a situation where someone has promised to install Navitron equipment, failed to source it for whatever reason and then passed off other equipment. In such a situation the installer should have explained the problem, said which equipment they proposed to install and checked that this was acceptable with their customer. Not doing so is wrong, the rest is business.

[wyleu]

It would be interesting if people where able to register their serial number in some way but it would be a little bit harsh to shut out a counterfeited panel, if only so we could make technical comparisons with an (hopefully) inferior product.

I might write that.

[kristen]

Does Navitron have a Registered trade mark for their goods?  Much easier (well, relatively ) to mount a trade mark infringement than a passing-off action.

[MR GUS]

It would be interesting if people where able to register their serial number in some way but it would be a little bit harsh to shut out a counterfeited panel, if only so we could make technical comparisons with an (hopefully) inferior product.

I might write that.

 NOT shut out BUT offer  assistance & advice if it go's "teets-up" & help get redress rather than shouted at down the phone for no good reason.
..lets face it what else are they hiding / slacking on being so subversive in the first place?
If I've been pooped upon from a great height & at great cost, I'd appreciate help from those in the know to assist in some manner, eg get someone approved &  trusted to check my system & report back as to the level of skullduggery to maybe help protect a company name, save lives potentially (burst bodged hot water onto sleeping child anyone) advice & work with local trading to keelhaul the buggers for potential damage to the brand, reputation & trade of company.

[David]

(burst bodged hot water onto sleeping child anyone)

As I recall the primary cause was the failure of the thermostat in an immersion heater. The secondary cause was the parents not investigating the very hot water and the tertiary cause was a storage tank that was not installed properly.

[Ivan]

Yes Navitron is a registered Trademark. Agreed, there's no money in pursuing counterfeiters, but you CAN report it to the Police/Trading Standards who deal with it for you at no cost - which is very much the way to go.


Fortunately, it's only one company involved, and it looks like it may be happening regularly. We've been helpful to the customers involved - it's not their fault, after all! The main concern is that if customers have a badly performing panel, and believe it is a Navitron panel, then it will start rumours that our panels are not up to standard - it's very important that this doesn't happen.

You're right, a lot of customers wouldn't want to register their details, and I totally sympathise with that - certainly we don't want to alienate anyone. Thinking out loud, perhaps we could offer an extended warranty for those who registered their details -  I wouldn't have thought that would put anyone off.

[MR GUS]

 yes, but you know what I mean ..a system that would make a brave man run away & hide (sic)