Feb. 27, 2020—A federal judge in North Carolina awarded Hyundai a $5 million judgment against a Miami-based company accused of infringing Hyundai's trademarks through the sale of illegal gray market service and collision automotive parts.
The judgment also awarded Hyundai a permanent injunction against the defendant, Direct Technologies International Inc. (DTI).
Despite superficial similarities in the appearance of DTI's non-genuine parts, expert analysis in the case revealed that many of DTI's parts were counterfeits or defective parts that were sourced from unscrupulous trading companies in the Middle East, Vietnam, and Russia.
In 2016, Hyundai informed vehicle owners of the dangers of counterfeit air bags bearing the company's trademarks, which during crash tests failed to perform the critical function of saving lives in an accident.
Since then, Hyundai has partnered with the Automotive Anti-Counterfeiting Council through Mobis Parts America, to increase consumer awareness regarding counterfeit automotive parts and operations.
Read more on improving communication with customers when it comes to parts here.
