Friends Turn Foes: Honda sues Hero over Electric Scooter Design

Published On: 3 June 2020
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Honda accuses Hero Electric of copying designs of Moove electric scooter in its Dash range of electric scooters.

At one time, the 2006 Forbes list of the World's 200 Most Respected Companies ranked Hero Honda Motors at 108th position. Hero Honda was a joint venture between Hero Cycles of India and Honda of Japan, one of the largest motorcycle companies in the world. In 2010, Honda moved out of the venture and its shares were brought by the Hero group. Soon, the partners became rivals in the highly competitive Indian motorcycle market which is one of the largest in the world. In the electric scooter segment, Hero Electric is making its presence felt across the globe. It is an entirely separate entity and has no business relationship with Hero Motocorp. Hero Electric is owned by Naveen Munjal, a relative of the Munjal family of Hero MotoCorp.

Now, Honda 2-Wheelers has sued Hero Electric over design infringement. In a recent development, the Japanese bikemaker approached the Delhi High Court. In its petition, it has accused Hero Electric of copying its design. Honda seeks the court's help in stopping the Indian company from manufacturing, selling and advertising the Dash electric scooter. The company, in its petition, seeks an ad-interim injunction against Hero Electric. It alleges that Hero was “infringing” on the “registered design” of the rear cover and front and rear lamps of its Moove electric scooter.

The Dash electric scooter was launched last year in the Indian market at a price of Rs 62,000 (Ex-Showroom, India). It is currently not sold in India but keeping in sync with Honda’s ambitious outlook, we can expect it to arrive in the near future.

The Delhi High Court on May 22 asked Hero Electric to respond to the allegations, as per the media report. The High Court heard the arguments placed by Honda on May 29 and was scheduled to hear Hero Electric's side of the story on Tuesday, but the case was re-listed for June 11, as per the report.

Indian electric scooter market is going leaps and bounds with the Indian government pushing for more environmentally friendly transport solutions. Honda’s Indian subsidiary HMSI is looking to bring in electric scooters and bikes in the near future and the case serves as an indicator of Honda’s bullish outlook for the Indian market