Softening of the design protection for spare parts

In the future, visible vehicle spare parts will no longer be subject to unlimited design protection 

With the passing of the law to strengthen fair competition (Gesetz zur Stärkung des fairen Wettbewerbs), the German Bundestag has also made changes to the design law (§ 40a was added to the Design-Gesetz) for vehicle spare parts. A repair clause is thus included in the German design law, which excludes visible vehicle spare parts from design protection. Original spare parts will no longer have to be used when repairing the vehicle body in the future. 

This opens the way for these spare parts to be manufactured by independent auto parts manufacturers. The previous design protection for exterior body parts for future new vehicles is no longer applicable. However, all previously registered designs should continue to be valid for a period of 25 years. 

Associations of vehicle parts manufacturers welcomed the fact that the federal government has now agreed on the introduction of a repair clause in the design law. However, they criticized the planned extensive grandfathering (25 years long protection for already registered designs). On the other hand, Association of International Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (Verband der Internationalen Kraftfahrzeughersteller) warned of negative consequences for employment in the automotive industry. 

The text of the passed law to strengthen fair competition can be found here.