Jaguar Land Rover is pursuing BYD through the Dutch courts over allegations that the Chinese manufacturer’s Ti7 SUV copies the Land Rover Defender, after court-appointed bailiffs seized digital records from BYD’s Netherlands offices in August. A hearing at The Hague this week will decide whether BYD has a case to answer over the alleged infringement of the Defender’s intellectual property.
The dispute comes before BYD’s planned British launch of the seven-seat plug-in hybrid in January, at a price more than £20,000 below the Defender 110. It puts the protection of vehicle designs at the centre of a commercial contest between the British premium manufacturer and its Chinese rival.
Both companies declined to comment on the ongoing proceedings. JLR’s allegation that the Ti7 infringes its intellectual property has not been established by the hearing described in the case.
Digital records seized at two Dutch offices
The court-ordered action took place at BYD offices in Schiedam and Hoofddorp. Bailiffs seized digital records in August, before the hearing at The Hague on whether the company has a case to answer.
The seizures are a significant part of the sequence leading to the court hearing, but they do not themselves establish that BYD copied the Defender or infringed JLR’s rights. The question before the court this week concerns whether the allegations warrant a case against BYD.
No details of the seized records have been supplied, and their contents cannot be described. It is also not possible to say from the available information how those records will affect the court’s consideration of JLR’s claims.
The distinction between an allegation and a finding is important here. JLR is seeking to protect the Defender’s intellectual property, while the Dutch proceedings will determine whether its challenge can move forward. The companies’ decision not to comment leaves their detailed positions on the ongoing proceedings unstated.
Ti7 priced £20,470 below Defender 110
The Ti7 went on sale in China in September last year. BYD now plans to bring the seven-seat plug-in hybrid to Britain in January, with a price of £47,995.
The Defender 110 starts at £68,465, making the difference between the two stated prices £20,470. That gap gives the legal dispute a clear commercial context, although the prices alone do not establish that the vehicles are equivalent in their specifications or equipment.
Nor does a lower selling price answer the question of intellectual property infringement. That is the issue JLR is taking to court, separate from the price at which BYD intends to offer its SUV to British buyers.
The timing brings the Dutch proceedings close to BYD’s intended entry into the British market with this model. There is no supplied information establishing that the hearing will change the January launch plan or the announced price, so neither can be treated as an outcome of the case.
Defender sales rise as Range Rover sales fall
JLR, which is owned by India’s Tata Motors, sold 29,500 Defenders to retail customers between July and September, compared with 25,370 in the same period a year earlier. That is an increase of 4,130 vehicles.
The Defender figures contrast with those for Range Rover. Sales fell to 43,300 in the third quarter from 47,196, a reduction of 3,896. The two sets of figures show different sales trends within JLR, rather than a uniform decline across the models cited.
Chinese manufacturers are also gaining a prominent position in the British market. Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show that Chery’s Jaecoo was the UK’s bestselling car in October, with 10,813 registrations and a market share of 4.3 per cent.
Those registration figures provide context for the competition facing British premium carmakers. They do not, however, establish a cause for the fall in Range Rover sales or demonstrate any effect from the Ti7, whose British launch is still planned for January.
Dutch hearing is the next step
JLR has previously succeeded in a legal challenge against a Chinese manufacturer. In 2019, it won a three-year case against Jiangling Motor Corporation. That earlier result is part of the company’s history of defending its intellectual property, but it does not determine the outcome of the dispute with BYD.
The next step is the hearing at The Hague. Its stated purpose is to decide whether BYD has a case to answer, not to announce a confirmed finding of infringement. Until the court has considered that question, both the legal outcome and any consequences for the planned British launch remain uncertain.
