Okay, One of the worst things when looking to buy Formula 1 merchandise is fake items.

1. F1 merchandise should always be provided with tags. If you are unsure ask the seller to see an image of the tags, some of them (Ferrari BMW and Mclaren) all have holograms on the tags.

2. F1 merchandise is expensive. A cap retails at around £20 so expect to get it on ebay above £15, plus postage. If the item is too cheap, then odds are it is.

3. Marlboro. If you are looking for Ferrari merchandise then be aware that they do not have the marlboro logo's on. If they are orfficial then they sell by more than quadruple the normal price, and if unsure, check google images to see what the teamware looks like

4.How does it look? Think about it Formula 1 teams want sponsors, and this means they have o have teamware which loks ok. It isn't all really fashionable, but think, Would the drivers of that team actually wear it?

5. Make sure the seller accepts paypal. This should mean that they are confident that there products are up to a good standard.

6. Ask the seller if what they are selling is fake, if they don't reply then usually it is. If they reply and it is, then you can report them to the police.

7. Make sure that everything is spelt right. If you look closely quite often there are small spelling mistakes, this means that the item is not licensed and is a fake.

8. Look at the description of the item, check, does it actually say that the item is genuine?

9 Check the sellers feedback. See if anyone has left feedback saying the items are fake, just because someone might have over 95% feedback, doesnt mean that the items arent fake, people may just be happy that the got the product cheap knowing they are fake.

And finally here is a small chart giving you some idea of how much you should be paying for items.

Cap: £15 +

Basic T Shirt: £18 +

 Team T Shirt (With all sponsors on) £30 +

Team Polo Shirt: £35 +

Team Jacket £80 +

Please note this is only a rough guide of prices.

Here is an example of a fake jacket and a real one. The fake jacket is on the left and the real jacket on the right.

We hope you find this guide of use. If you feel there are any other points we should add please drop us an email. Thanks for looking.

Edit: Please beware of Sellers in China! We have had a  lot of emails asking about some sellers who are selling Caps for around £5, they look very similar to the official ones but are fake! If in doubt email us and we will have a look for you!