According to the World IP Review, the Trading Standards team of the Bath and North East Somerset Council discovered that Gunter had been selling the counterfeit goods both through his own website and on eBay using the name Car Style Direct.
Close to 8,000 counterfeit goods were found in his possession and were confiscated.
In July, the Bristol Crown Court ruled that as well as the jail sentence (which has been postponed for two years), Gunter will also have to be under supervision for the next two years and wear an electronic tag. Furthermore, he has been forbidden to trade on the internet for a two year period and has been told that he must also complete 240 hours of unsalaried work.
This is the second case of counterfeit car parts being sold in the UK this year.
Stephen and Elizabeth Anderson were recently given a jail sentence with a combined total of two years for buying counterfeit goods such as cufflinks and tyre valve caps from sellers in South East Asia and then selling them on eBAY, marketing them as genuine BMW merchandise.
Counterfeiting is generally only seen to be a significant problem in the Fashion industry since it is fashion cases in that are most frequently reported in the press. However, counterfeiting can occur in any industriy and therefore companies must be vigilant in protecting and policing their brands.
The best way to protect your company’s reputation, brand value and profits in today’s global marketplace is by registering a trademark and gaining trademark enforcement rights. However, just having the trademark is not enough. Like BMW you would also need to police your market for potential infringements and then be prepared to act on them when they do arise.
For advice and more information on searching, acquiring, registering and enforcing Trademarks please visit our website, http://www.lipex.com.
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