Designer luxuries have been exploited by traders on eBay.

A French court has ordered the world’s biggest online auctioneers, eBay, to pay a £30 million fine to luxury group LVMH for allowing traders to sell fake copies of its goods.

Items such as designer handbags, lipsticks and perfumes have been sold on eBay at low prices, creating controversy with designer brands. Louis Vuitton, Givenchy and Christian Dior are just few of the designer names to be exploited. 

eBay has hit back in a press statement and suggested that LVMH was trying to “protect uncompetitive commercial practices at the expense of consumer choice and the livelihood of law-abiding sellers that eBay empowers every day.”

Four perfume brands have also sued eBay, including Kenzo and Guerlain, due to what they claimed was ‘illicit’ sales of their products.

The French court has ordered eBay to pay large amounts of compensation to Louis Vuitton Malletier, the groups handbags and luggage division and sister brand Christian Dior “for the damage it had done to the brands.”  eBay has defended its position and said in a statement that it is difficult to tell which products are real and which are fake, leading to problems such as this.

eBay spokeswoman, Vanessa Canzini, told the BBC: “We will fight this ruling on their behalf; we will be seeking leave to appeal.”

“It is clear that eBay has become a focal point for certain brand owners’ desires to exact ever greater control over e-commerce.  We view these decisions as a step backwards for the consumers and businesses whom we empower every day.”

The site has previous history of problems with the law and the products it sells online. It is currently dealing with law suits from Tiffany&Co in New York and L’Oreal in the UK and five other European countries.

By Jessica Wilcox