A timber window supplier has agreed an out-of-court settlement with leading online window company TimberWindows.com in a branding name, copyright and design rights case.
In the settlement, rival company Timber Windows UK was ordered to change its name because of its similarity to TimberWindows.com and change its window design because aspects of the latter’s design “had been copied”, according to TimberWindows.com.
Timber Windows UK was also required to destroy stocks of its brochures in which pictures of windows designed by TimberWindows.com appeared.
Timber Windows UK has now changed its name, destroyed its brochures and agreed to change window designs.
For TimberWindows.com, it is the third time it has taken legal action against competitors – the other cases involved copying part of the company’s logo and using its photography.
“I find it incredible that some firms think it’s acceptable to imitate a competitor’s brand and to suggest that their competitor’s product designs and images are their own,” said Chris Brunsdon, managing director of TimberWindows.com.
“When a business invests substantial time and money in creating and developing its brand identity and designs, it’s simply not right that a competitor unlawfully tries to benefit from that investment.”
Oxford-based TimberWindows.com, part of the Performance Window Group, has production facilities in Poland and the Baltics and sells through a network of registered installers.
