I have never been to Turkey, and in all honesty it is not somewhere which has ever really appealed to me but just recently my sister went there for a fortnight with her family...
I asked her to bring me back a couple of sleeves of duty free cigarettes (like you do when you temporarily leave "rip-off Britain") and she kindly agreed to do so. She brought me back 400 Lambert & Butler which at first glance looked no different from those we buy here... Apart from the health warning being in Turkish!
Once inside the packet I noticed something slightly alarming. Printed in blue ink on the side of each cigarette were the words "Made in England" which I found rather unusual... Not that they were made in England and sold in Turkey, just that they had something other than the brand printed on the actual cigs... The next thing which struck me as odd was that they tasted nothing at all like the Lambert & Butler you buy here.
I was talking with some friends down the pub last night who told me that the reason was that they probably weren't Lambert & Butler because copyright laws do not apply in Turkey. He said that basically, anybody can bottle tap water and sell it as Evian, or that they could repackage cheap cola and sell it as Pepsi, without breaking the law.
I was a little dubious as to whether my friends were basing their knowledge on facts or if they just made it all up.
Does anybody know anything about copyright laws in Turkey
I don't know anything about copyright laws but I do know that in Turkey you can get fake everything and there doesn't seem to be any law stopping it. Some goods are very good but some are not, when you buy things you are very often told they are fake anyway. I wouldn't advise anyone to buy cigarettes anywhere other than a proper supermarket or in duty free where you will know you are getting originals. Your Lambert & Butler were undoubtedly fake.
I'm not too sure about drinks as I have never come across fake Coke or anything like that but most other things; clothes, shoes, bags, cds, dvds, basically anything with a lable will be passsed of as original when it isn't. If you aren't aware of this then you are very likely to be caught out but most people realise what is going on very quickly.
I'm not too sure about drinks as I have never come across fake Coke or anything like that but most other things; clothes, shoes, bags, cds, dvds, basically anything with a lable will be passsed of as original when it isn't. If you aren't aware of this then you are very likely to be caught out but most people realise what is going on very quickly.
ive just bought my son some lambert and butler on the plane and paid 20 euro per 200 about £16 , how much did you pay for them as this is the going price so if you got them much cheaper im sure they are fakes, i was warned not to buy fags in small shops etc due to a lot being fakes, so i only buy them in duty free or on the plane now.
theres a lot of fakes going around some to avoid are fags and perfume. the bags and clothing can be ok but there doesnt seem to be any law regarding this !!
theres a lot of fakes going around some to avoid are fags and perfume. the bags and clothing can be ok but there doesnt seem to be any law regarding this !!
matchstickman,
Unless the cigarettes were from an official source such as duty free, and they have the new orange duty paid sticker on them, they were probably fakes. Turkey is going through a slight revolution with tobacco and it's now law that any tobacco is supplied with a duty paid orange sticker to say they are from an official source. If they don't have that sticker, they will be fakes and whoever brought them back were lucky they didn't get stopped because they are likely to receive a huge fine and a night in jail for it these days. Turkey is well known for it's fake goods and they'll copy anything at a glance, even tobacco. Fake tobacco is generally of very poor quality. Most of there other stuff is quite good though!
Darren
Edited for typo
Unless the cigarettes were from an official source such as duty free, and they have the new orange duty paid sticker on them, they were probably fakes. Turkey is going through a slight revolution with tobacco and it's now law that any tobacco is supplied with a duty paid orange sticker to say they are from an official source. If they don't have that sticker, they will be fakes and whoever brought them back were lucky they didn't get stopped because they are likely to receive a huge fine and a night in jail for it these days. Turkey is well known for it's fake goods and they'll copy anything at a glance, even tobacco. Fake tobacco is generally of very poor quality. Most of there other stuff is quite good though!
Darren
Edited for typo
-
Edited by
Dazbo HT Mod
2008-11-14 14:37:46
All cigarettes bought anywhere in Turkey are fake, the only genuin ones are the ones bought in Duty Free at the airport or on the plane. On our trip to Marmaris I went into a local supermarket, and asked if they did royals, the reply was yes but they did not have any in the shop, he then sent a young boy out to get some from some where ???. I paid for them, as they looked like the normal version of British Royal, it wasnt until i started smoking them when i got home, that i found they were nothing like the normal Royals brand, and they gave me a bad throat, and in the end i threw them away, so be careful.
The cigarettes purchased for you were Fake ones, Inside Turkey British cigarettes are not sold anywhere, Real cigarettes are sold with a Yellow label attatched to the top of the pack, No yellow label means Fake note these are sold everywhere in Turkey also, If your caught going through security at any Airport inside Turkey with any amount of fake contrabrand they confiscate them all.
We were told by reps both time we were in Turkey that they have no such thing as copyright there. This means that there is the potential to be ripped off big time. But realistically if something seems to good to be true then it probably is to good to be true.
Two very well know s c a m s are perfume and cigarettes.
Although I guess if there is no such thing as copyright then there is no such thing as a fake as I suppose one cant exist without the other.
Two very well know s c a m s are perfume and cigarettes.
Although I guess if there is no such thing as copyright then there is no such thing as a fake as I suppose one cant exist without the other.
Here's an article regarding copyright below in Turkey have a read through it as this is the law of Turkey.
http://www.wipo.int/clea/en/text_html.jsp?lang=EN&id=3843
http://www.wipo.int/clea/en/text_html.jsp?lang=EN&id=3843
we bought the usual jeans and teaa shirts,
id never dream of buying anythingh electrical or anything id eat or drink you would have to be mad.
that sad.
Walking round the market in altinkum, it was 40'c i couldnt see any bars or shops so i got a bottle of water off a street seller,
i checked the seal it was on so i bought it, continued walking round finsihed the drink, and held the empty bottle in my hand as i could not see a bin,
the youngster took it off my smiling i thought, wow arent they helpful.
then it dawned on me, he wanted to fill it up and use it again.
smile went off my face and tummy was upset for a day.
id never dream of buying anythingh electrical or anything id eat or drink you would have to be mad.
that sad.
Walking round the market in altinkum, it was 40'c i couldnt see any bars or shops so i got a bottle of water off a street seller,
i checked the seal it was on so i bought it, continued walking round finsihed the drink, and held the empty bottle in my hand as i could not see a bin,
the youngster took it off my smiling i thought, wow arent they helpful.
then it dawned on me, he wanted to fill it up and use it again.
smile went off my face and tummy was upset for a day.
Thanks for all the advice guys...
Turns out the cigs don't have an orange sticker on them... So I'm guessing they're fakes!
I have thrown the rest in the bin to avoid any poisoning from middle eastern chemical warfare!!
Thanks again for sharing your knowledge!
You know when you buy a can of coke (coca-cola) from a take away and it has what looks like Turkish / Greek writing on them... I am guessing that this is the same problem then as it usually doesn't taste anything like coca-cola which has the ingredients written on in English!
Turns out the cigs don't have an orange sticker on them... So I'm guessing they're fakes!
I have thrown the rest in the bin to avoid any poisoning from middle eastern chemical warfare!!
Thanks again for sharing your knowledge!
You know when you buy a can of coke (coca-cola) from a take away and it has what looks like Turkish / Greek writing on them... I am guessing that this is the same problem then as it usually doesn't taste anything like coca-cola which has the ingredients written on in English!
hi can anyone tell me what age 
you have to be to to get cigs on duty free as ill have 2 16yr olds& 17yr old with me 
you have to be to to get cigs on duty free as ill have 2 16yr olds& 17yr old with me
To take into Turkey it's 600 cigs and 8x50gram pouches of hand rolling tobacco, Note also to get these you must provide a Passport at the till.
Lorna, you need to be 18 to purchase cigs at duty free leaving the UK and you need to be 18 to bring them back into the UK so no use for 16/17 year olds!
lorna
We've only ever been allowed to take 200 cigarettes each into Turkey
But you can buy another 400 per person at the Duty Free shop on arrival in Turkey.
I bought 1000 on my onur air flight on the way into dalaman. I was asked if they were all for me ? I just pointed to my wife and said ..NO sharing !! No problem they said. ( the wife dont even smoke LOL ). Then bought 400 on the way back home.
PS>>
No I havent smoked them all yet.
Gink.
PS>>
No I havent smoked them all yet.
Gink.
Regularly take 1000 ciggies each into Turkey. Never been questioned at duty free in the UK. It even says you can take 1000 each on the list displayed in UK duty free.
Legally you can only bring 200 ciggies each back into the UK.
Denny
Legally you can only bring 200 ciggies each back into the UK.
Denny
Post a Reply
Please sign in or register an account to reply to this post.
Similar Topics
-
Getting Married in Turkey questions, answers, advise etc
Posted by hayal in Turkey Discussion Forum
-
Answers to your questions about Bulgaria
Posted by majesty in Bulgaria Discussion Forum
-
Cape Verde Questions and Answers
Posted by stanjan in Africa/Middle East Discussion Forum
-
Answers to some of your money questions - MEXICO
Posted by Derwentrocker in Caribbean Discussion Forum
-
Sahara trip please post all questions and answers here
Posted by chrisp in Tunisia Discussion Forum