Petaling Jaya, Malaysia – Global rubber gloves buyers have been warned against ‘scammers and conmen’ with claims of immediate deliveries or shipments of gloves.
With current order lead time of at least six to eight weeks, “any company that claims to have ready stock for new buyers is possibly a scammer,” said president of the Malaysian Rubber Glove Manufacturers Association (MARGMA) Dr Supramaniam Shanmugam in a 22 Dec statement.
According to Shanmugam, MARGMA has issued several warnings about scammers and con artists intermittently since June 2020 and has engage with relevant authorities to address the issue.
“Despite the efforts, many desperate and unsuspecting buyers had since been conned of millions of dollars from all around the globe through various online transactions without receiving any gloves or received defective gloves,” he added.
MARGMA warned against those who pose as “agent or allocation holder” for manufacturers, saying that manufacturers make no such arrangement.
Other scamming activities reported over the course of year included “passing off visuals of stocks in warehouse available for immediate sale”; claiming to ‘lock in capacity’ for future orders and collecting upfront deposits; misrepresenting the quality of the gloves; shipping off defective gloves; and unauthorised packing of gloves under manufacturers’ brand.
MARGMA urged buyers to beware of “who they are dealing with” and if in doubt, to check with the manufacturers directly.
Under the Malaysian Law Act 551, the Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB), or known as
Lembaga Getah Malaysia (LGM) is the authority to issue licenses to manufacturers, traders, importers and exporters of rubber gloves. Companies that operate without MRB licenses will have to face enforcement actions by MRB.
According to the statement, the MRB is currently working with the Malaysian Rubber Council (MRC) and MARGMA to step up its surveillance and monitoring of scammers.
The board, it added, has recently had taken actions against a few companies that had traded rubber gloves without license
MARGMA expects the global shortage of gloves to last beyond the first quarter of 2022.
The association anticipates an annual demand growth rate of around 15%-20% in 2021, raising global consumption figures to 420 billion pieces, with a projected export revenue of RM34 billion for Malaysia.
