The High Court in London has ruled in favour of Enterprise Holdings, owner of Enterprise Rent A Car, in a trademark dispute with rival car rental firm Europcar.
The dispute focused on the use of an ‘e’ logo: Europcar introduced this element into its branding in 2012. Enterprise claimed that Europcar’s new logo was “confusingly” similar to the Enterprise trademark, which it had been using since 1994.
The court concluded that Europcar’s logo infringed Enterprise’s rights.
A Europcar spokesman said: "The Europcar group has taken note of the decision. Europcar is considering with its advisers the different options that are available, including the possibility of appeal.”
Enterprise’s European senior vice-president, Jim Burrell, said: “We have invested heavily over recent years to grow the Enterprise brand in Europe. Customers have the right to know who they are buying from, and what that company stands for, which is why our brand matters so much.”
The two car rental firms formed a transatlantic alliance in 2008. However in December last year, an arbitration ruled that Europcar could no longer use its sister brands Alamo and National in Europe.