The launch of the Polestar 2 has gotten off to a rough start, but matters are even worse in France where sales of the electric vehicle have reportedly been blocked.
According to The Connexion, Citroen feels Polestar’s logo infringes on their trademarked double chevron badge. In particular, the company pointed to two trademarks which they believe Polestar has violated.
While it’s hard to believe people would confuse the logos, both have two chevrons. However, Citroen has them stacked one on top of the other while Polestar has them pointed at one another to create the shape of a partial star.
Also Read: Polestar 2 Unveiled As A Tesla Model 3 Competitor
Despite the differences, Citroen filed suit against Polestar last year and now a court has reportedly sided with the French automaker. As part of the ruling, Polestar will reportedly have to pay €150,000 ($175,120 / £135,418) and suspend sales for at least six months. The publication went on to say the sales ban could be extended if the brands don’t come to an agreement.
The court’s decision is already having an impact as French citizens are greeted by a message saying “Access to the Polestar site is not accessible to the French public due to territorial restrictions on the use of French trademarks n ° 016898173 and n ° 01689532” when attempting to visit the Polestar website. We confirmed this via a proxy and it’s worth mentioning the website is logoless.
What happens next remains unclear, but it sounds like the brands will attempt to reach a compromise. Of course, there’s no word on what that will entail or when an agreement could be reached.
