Nearly Half of Britons Find Tamper Proof Labels to Be a Nuisance

Despite having the knowledge of the fact that tamper proof labels make for an absolute necessity in various industries, 49% of consumers cannot help but find them to be annoying. This is what came to light following the results of a survey conducted by a UK based label production company, which made sure to highlight the importance of these tamper proof labels in industries such as defence, government, official healthcare departments, education and normal, everyday procedures which form part of typical workplace operations.

At the typical end-user consumer level, people ordinarily come into contact with tamper proof labels through retailers (on clothes labels) and on CD and DVD packaging. The use of these tamper proof labels in these types of scenarios is largely geared towards consolidating on security and helping to prevent theft. Other uses for tamper proof labels include:

• Ensuring envelopes bearing confidential documents are sealed properly
• Sealing of collection boxes which are delivered to charitable organisations
• Clothing-tag price labelling
• Ensuring food packaging is sealed safely
• Safe transportation of medicine, and
• Validation of warranty compliance on electronics (warranty stickers)

The procedure which goes into manufacturing tamper proof labels makes use of a combination of strong adhesives used in conjunction with materials which tear and disintegrate easily, such as vinyl and a brittle foil and soft plastic substance. When an attempt is made to remove the label, evidence of such tampering shows clearly. This makes it much safer to deliver products as a way to ensure the rightful recipient is the only one who opens it.

Also featured on Fresh Plaza, the survey was commissioned by Data Label, in which they asked 529 people aged 18 and older (UK) if they find tamper proof labels to be a nuisance or necessity. Rather alarmingly, 49% of them responded that they do indeed find them to be a nuisance, regardless of their clear security-related importance in a number of industries. Despite their importance, they’d still prefer to do without them altogether, although it must be said that a less annoying alternative would probably be welcomed. Consumers who come into contact with them say they’re difficult to remove, they leave marks on the purchased goods on which they’re used and they just make it quite difficult to get into the packaging of some goods as well.

Philip Carlyn, Managing Director of Data Label, commented on the results, stating:

“We were surprised to see that so many people are averse to tamper evident labels. Over the past few years, retailers have reported a massive increase in price label swapping – from small boutiques to larger high street stores. Worldwide clothing retailers have reported losses into the hundreds of thousands of pounds over 6 month periods due to this, so using tamper proof labels on items in store makes sense.”

He continued:

“Retailers using them are looking out for their customers’ best interests to prove that their product has not been tampered with, damaged or otherwise compromised. Bringing awareness to this can help customers understand that, even though they can be annoying to remove, tamper evident labels are an absolute necessity.”