Have there been cases of fraudulent masks being sold in Luxembourg since the beginning of the pandemic? Our colleagues from 5minutes took a closer look.
At the beginning of July, Reporter.lu announced that a series of type FFP2 masks bought across the country turned out to provide less protection than advertised when tested. How did this happen? Companies falsified the EU consumer protection logo, which allowed them to print the “CE” seal on unapproved masks. It was announced shortly after the Luxembourgish Institute for Product Accreditation (ILNAS) decided to recall masks acquired from said sources.
High prices and low quality an issue with increased demand for masks
When CSV deputy Claude Wiseler brought up the issue of fraudulent masks on the market, both the Ministry of the Economy and the Ministry of Health confirmed that ILNAS ran into trouble with suppliers that had wrongfully printed the EU approval sign on their products. Further import from concerned sources had been stopped immediately.
This means that for the period between 1 April and 25 July, the government had temporarily allowed the sale of non-conforming masks on Luxembourgish territory. The administration emphasised that no masks with potential health risks were ever part of the market, and that since ILNAS stopped the import from known scammers, no further cases of fraudulent masks were discovered in Luxembourg.
Nevertheless, where are still cases where new type FFP2 masks have to be recalled, as was the case at the beginning of July.
