The world of luxury watches can often be overwhelming and confusing, especially when purchasing a secondhand timepiece. The sheer number of options can be daunting when purchasing online, especially when not all of them are legitimate. For this reason, we have put together this guide on how to spot fake luxury watches. Unknowingly buying a fake watch is a very disappointing feeling, and owning one is considered to be a criminal offence in some countries. This eventuality is best avoided. In this guide, we will offer some of our best tips to keep in mind in order to avoid buying a counterfeit watch.
Our Top Tips on How to Spot a Fake Luxury Watch
1. Only purchase watches from authorised retailers.
The easiest way to ensure that you purchase a genuine watch is to only buy from authorised retailers. Fake luxury watches are often sold in unregulated places, such as online and in markets. For this reason, many experts would advise against buying from somewhere if they cannot prove that they are an authorised retailer. The replica watch market is anticipated to be worth around $1 billion a year, so it is not surprising that there are many fake watches on the market. The same is true whether you are purchasing a new model or a second-hand watch. Whether a watch is brand new or pre-owned it ought to be provided with the relevant paperwork and certification.
2. Question ‘too good to be true’ offers
In the luxury watch industry, if an offer is too good to be true, it probably is. If you are being offered a discontinued or limited edition model for a surprisingly low price, you really ought to question why. More often than not, it is because the watch is not a genuine product. Similarly, if you have managed to locate a very rare timepiece, its authenticity should be questioned. In this instance, it is not guaranteed to be fake, but a collector ought to ask for authentication.
3. Try to view the watch in person
The easiest way to judge whether a watch is fake is to see it in person. this way it can be closely examined and the collector can get a feel for the place that is selling it. When buying online, it can be easy to be misled by a well-edited photo. These edits and well-positioned shots cannot be made in person, so anything suspicious can immediately be detected. Additionally, fake watches are often made with lower quality materials than the real thing. This often leads to the fakes being much lighter than the real models. By feeling the timepiece in your own hands, it will be much easier to detect a fake luxury watch.
4. Check for mistakes on the watch
As the production process is much more rushed, and the timepieces are not checked as thoroughly, there are often small mistakes to be found on fake watches. Luxury brands take huge pride in perfection, so it is incredibly unlikely that there will be any mistakes or imperfections on a genuine timepiece. If some lettering is wonky or spelt incorrectly then the watch’s authenticity should be questioned. Fake luxury watches are never going to be of the same high quality as the real thing. This means that not a fake watch will not last nearly as long and will not perform as well as a genuine model.
If you are searching for your next timepiece and are looking for an authorised retailer, click here to browse hundreds of brands on our website.
Have you learnt anything from our guide on how to spot fake luxury watches? Do you have any other tips to share? Let us know in the comments!
