Beware of trade mark renewal scams: How to spot one
Concerned that you might fall victim to one of the costly trade mark renewal scams in the UK?
To help you avoid these expensive and frustrating trade mark renewal scams, the expert team at Trademark Eagle explains how these scams work and how you can spot them in just several straightforward steps.
How do trade mark renewal scams work?
Unfortunately, trade mark renewal scams have been reported to the IPO (Intellectual Property Office) since 2015.
These scams involve companies misrepresenting themselves as the IPO and reaching out to owners of patents and trade marks in the UK.
They use freely available information on the trade mark register to identify and contact trade mark owners with misleading invoices or trade mark renewal “reminder” letters when their renewal date is approaching.
Typically, these letters invite the trade mark owner to register in a private register or directory, but this won’t help you to protect your trade mark in any way.
Alternatively, this letter might ask you to pay inflated fees.
How to spot trade mark renewal scams
If you (and not your representative) receive a letter that you suspect could be part of one of these trade mark renewal scams, it’s vital that you seek professional advice.
However, you may be able to spot some trade mark renewal scams yourself by looking out for:
An imitated logo or name
In order to imitate an official trade mark body like the IPO or the EUIPO, these trade renewal mark scams will often use similar logos and names.
If you receive a suspicious letter, simply compare the company name and logo to the official bodies and analyse for any discrepancies.
Urgent language
Trade mark renewal scams will often create letters that have a sense of urgency to worry to trade mark owners and encourage them to pay the invoice before they notice the suspicious nature of the letter.
Red and bold text or the use of words like ‘important’ or ‘urgent’ in these letters are often indicative of a scam.
Inflated fees
The cost of renewing a trade mark for one class or goods or services your trade mark is in is £200.
If you receive an inflated invoice amount that is disproportionate to fees you usually pay, you could be being targeted by a trade mark renewal scam.
You can trust Trademark Eagle
Concerned about trade mark renewal scams? You can trust Trademark Eagle to look after your intellectual property.
Our experienced in-house legal counsel can carry out trade mark renewal services on your behalf to help prevent legal disputes and trade mark infringement.
With access to sophisticated search software and information from UK’s IPO (licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0) and the EUIPO, we even offer a trade mark monitoring service to keep you informed about any new competing national or international trade mark applications.
To learn more about trade mark renewal and protection, please don’t hesitate to arrange your free initial consultation today.
You can either give our professional team a call on 0122 3208 624, email your enquiry to enquiries@trademark-eagle.com, or get in touch using our online contact form.
Alternatively, you can also speak to us using our convenient live chat feature.
