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4 November 2016Trademarks

Hyundai takes on grey market in TM claim

Car manufacturer Hyundai has taken on the ‘grey market’ by filing a trademark infringement claim against Isher Trading, a spare parts supplier based in Dubai.

In a suit filed on Tuesday, November 1 at the US District Court for the District of Nevada, Hyundai alleged that Isher is importing and selling Hyundai-branded parts, which were meant for sale abroad, to resellers in the US.

It alleged that the resellers then sold these parts on to Hyundai’s authorised dealers in the US, “without notifying the dealers that these parts are not Hyundai genuine parts, were not sourced through Hyundai’s authorised chain of distribution and are not covered by Hyundai warranties”.

Hyundai has also claimed false designation of origin, trademark dilution, unfair competition and deceptive trade practices.

The trademarks owned by the car manufacturer include the word mark ‘Hyundai’ and a logo consisting of an ‘H’ within a circle.

According to Hyundai, the spare parts contain a number of material differences, including in warranty protection.

“Moreover, defendant is intentionally inducing resellers to infringe Hyundai’s trademarks by, among other things, representing to those resellers that defendant’s parts are ‘genuine’, causing a likelihood of confusion,” said the suit.

The filing added that because of the defendant’s actions, the resellers and others believe “that the Hyundai warranties apply to the parts (when they do not) and that they thus do not need to (and do not) offer an equivalent warranty to dealers or end-customers”.

Hyundai is seeking injunctive relief, an order directing US Customs and Border Protection to refuse entry of automobile parts or accessories bearing the Hyundai marks by the defendants, and a jury trial.

The company has also asked for compensatory, triple and punitive damages, an account of profits stemming from the alleged infringement, costs, disbursements and attorneys’ fees.

A spokesperon for Hyundai said the company has nothing to add at this time.

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