Declaration-of-conformity documents from at least two legitimate manufacturers are being copied and reissued with altered SKU tables for couplers that were never tested.
Since March 2026 RegiVerify has examined eleven conformity files supplied with imported quick couplers in the 3–14 tonne class. Six were reproductions of genuine documents belonging to two European manufacturers, with the SKU table and batch range substituted.
The forgeries are competent. Notified-body numbers are real, the layout is correct, and the signatures are lifted from published documents. The reliable tell is that the batch codes on the substituted table do not resolve to anything at the named manufacturer, and the coupler bodies themselves carry no traceable etch.
This is a safety matter rather than a commercial one. An untested coupler that releases under load is the failure mode behind a meaningful share of serious site injuries involving excavators.
What buyers should do
- 01
Ask the named manufacturer to confirm the batch code directly. All of the affected manufacturers will do this by email within a day.
- 02
Reject any coupler whose body carries no permanent laser etch or heat-number reference.
- 03
Where a coupler is already in service and provenance cannot be established, treat it as uncertified and replace it rather than testing it in place.
If you have information relevant to this notice — documentation, a transaction record, or a contradicting account — send it to the registry team. Alerts are amended when evidence warrants it, and every amendment is dated.