Volvo wins damages from counterfeiter’s PayPal in $2m suit

A US federal court has awarded Volvo $2 million in damages for counterfeit accessories sold by anonymous China-based entities.

In the order, issued on December 31, the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia also ordered PayPal to transfer any funds held by the defendants to the auto company.

The order did not specify the type of goods in question, but stated that they were “intended to fit original Volvo Car automobiles” and often bore genuine Volvo product numbers.

According to Volvo, the goods in question were “cheap, low quality imitations” of its products.

The counterfeits were sold on “thousands” of e-commerce sites, including eBay.

Transactions were processed through US-based PayPal. The court ordered PayPal to release all funds held in accounts linked to the counterfeit goods as partial payment of the $2 million award.

The court also instructed PayPal to identify and close any new accounts linked to the defendants, upon receipt of a notice by Volvo.

After being informed of new accounts by Volvo, PayPal will be required to close them within two days.

Volvo initially filed the suit in July 2019, and submitted a motion for default judgment.

Magistrate judge Michael Nachmanoff filed a report at the end of November 2019 recommending that the motion be granted.

On December 31, district judge Liam O’Grady ordered that Nachmanoff’s report and recommendations be put into effect.