legal case
about us
legal case
Our battle isn’t just in the court of public opinion, it’s in actual courts as well. BMW has been fighting us tooth and nail through legal channels to keep these cars off the market. They argue that because the cars were in the ship fire (even though only soot settled on them), the quality can’t be guaranteed and that reselling them would hurt BMW’s brand reputation. They only shout that out, but they haven’t given any proof of that statement. BMW even went as far as deceiving the Court and making false accusations to the entrepreneurs and state misleading insinuations to ensure an court injunction!
Using those claims, BMW obtained court injunctions to block any sale. They’ve cited everything from trademark law to design rights to assert that these specific cars cannot be sold by anyone else. As mentioned, BMW’s lawyers even got a court order seizing the cars to ensure none can be driven.
In July 2024, the District Court in The Hague ruled in a preliminary judgment in favor of BMW, effectively banning the sale of the 260 Fremantle BMWs (at least within the EU) for the duration of the legal proceedings [4][5]. This was a heavy blow – the court
agreed with BMW’s pending the further legal proceedings, and based upon BMW’s unsubstantiated claims, safety and quality concerns and issued an order preventing the cars from being sold to consumers. As a result, the 260 BMWs have been stuck in storage, gathering dust instead of making drivers happy. The entrepreneurs who own the cars had attempted to get BMW’s seizure lifted through an injunction, but the court did not grant it, and so the sales are on hold pending further legal proceedings.
The legal fight isn’t over, however. The case is moving into further proceedings and the outcome in the legal case could still change. In the meantime, the court imposed strict penalties to ensure compliance: for example, hefty fines (up to €250,000 per violation, max €50 million) if any car is sold against the ruling. Clearly, BMW is determined to keep these cars off the road, but we remain determined to find a solution.
This situation highlights a complex question. How do we assess the condition and fate of goods salvaged from a disasterWe maintain that independent experts have certified the cars as safe, and we believe that a creative solution can be found that doesn’t
involve destroying them.
Our foundation will continue to explore all legal options and rally public support. We stand by the principle that sustainability and common sense should prevail. Scrapping 260 perfectly good, nearly new cars is an awful waste in every sense.
With your help and support, we will keep fighting to Free the Fremantle BMWs and give these cars the second life they deserve.