Authorities have found that 25 percent of imported car tires are counterfeit copies of the original brands. The discovery has been made possible by using the latest and most developed techniques in the laboratory, Mohammed Hashem Al-Zain, General Manager of Al-Amjad Private Laboratory, said here on Monday. Authorities have put greater stress on the testing of imported tires after 40 percent of them were found to be fake last year. Al-Amjad Private Laboratory conducts tests in cooperation with the Jeddah Sea Port and Saudi Customs Office. “There are many specifications required in imported car tires. These have become especially important since several road accidents have been attributed to faulty tires,” added Al-Zain. The Customs Office, he said, began using the latest techniques to inspect car tires two months ago, and since then has discovered that most of the fake tires are imported from East Asian countries. “The tires have an expiry date of two years. After that many dangerous signs will appear,” added Al-Zain. The role of the Saudi Customs Office stops with the examination of the tires. The Commercial Fraud Commission acts on the advice of Customs and takes action against the companies exporting these tires, he said. Some neighboring countries have also started sending random samples to the lab for examination. Statistics show that 60 percent of the imported car tires are from East Asia, thirty-five percent from Europe and five percent from other countries.
