Chinese carmaker BYD’s offices in Netherlands raided over JLR ‘copycat car’ claim

Court ordered bailiffs acting for Jaguar Land Rover reportedly raided BYD’s Dutch offices in August and seized digital records ahead of a hearing in The Hague. The case will consider whether BYD’s Ti7 SUV infringes intellectual property rights associated with the Land Rover Defender, a dispute that could affect the launch of a lower-priced rival in the UK.

The seven-seat plug-in hybrid has been sold in China since September last year and is due to arrive in the UK in January for £47,995. That is more than £20,000 below the starting price of a seven-seat Defender 110, which costs £68,465. JLR suspects BYD reverse-engineered technology for the Ti7, according to reports; both companies declined to comment on the ongoing case. JLR previously won a 2019 case against Jiangling Motor Corporation over a vehicle it said copied the Defender.