Design protection for spare parts

The European Commission published a proposal on 14 September 2004 to amend Directive 98/71/EC on the legal protection of designs. This is intended to encourage competition in the spare parts market.

The Commission propose a liberalisation across the European Union of the aftermarket in visible spare parts. The Directive will contain a repair clause which states that: there will be no design protection in a design which is a component part of a complex product and is used to repair that product so as to restore its original appearance. This means registered design protection would not be available for spare parts which must match the product as a whole.

Examples of such spare parts include car body panels, bumpers and windscreens which need to match the component being replaced. However, the directive affects all industry sectors.

The United Kingdom currently has a liberal regime, similar to that proposed by the Commission. Here the right in a registered design of a component part is not infringed by use of the design for the purpose of repair.

The European Parliament is currently considering the proposal (first reading) and the Council working groups are likely to continue discussions. The European Commission has further information on the proposal, including some frequently asked questions and an extended impact assessment.

We ran a consultation on the proposal, which closed in May 2005 and we have published the results (126Kb).