## Facts

- Volvo Trademark Holding AB owned the VOLVO trademark and used “Volvo Insurance” as a trade name for insurance and financial services.
- e-motordealer Ltd. operated an automotive services business (including insurance) through a franchised dealer network in the United Kingdom.
- e-motordealer registered the domain name `<volvoinsurance.com>` in 2001.
- Volvo filed a UDRP complaint seeking transfer of the domain name, alleging confusing similarity, lack of rights or legitimate interests, and bad-faith registration and use.
- e-motordealer argued it offered insurance relating to Volvo vehicles (and others) and that “Volvo insurance” functioned descriptively in that context.

## Issues

1. Whether `<volvoinsurance.com>` is identical or confusingly similar to a mark in which Volvo has rights under UDRP ¶ 4(a)(i).
2. Whether e-motordealer has rights or legitimate interests in `<volvoinsurance.com>` under UDRP ¶ 4(a)(ii).
3. Whether `<volvoinsurance.com>` was registered and is being used in bad faith under UDRP ¶ 4(a)(iii).

## Decision

- The panel found `<volvoinsurance.com>` confusingly similar to Volvo’s VOLVO mark and “Volvo Insurance” trade name.
- The panel found e-motordealer lacked rights or legitimate interests in the domain name.
- The panel found the domain name was registered and used in bad faith, including use to attract users for commercial gain by creating confusion as to source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement.
- The panel ordered transfer of `<volvoinsurance.com>` to Volvo.

## Legal Principles

- A domain name that wholly incorporates a complainant’s well-known mark and adds a descriptive term related to the complainant’s business can be confusingly similar under UDRP ¶ 4(a)(i); the “.com” gTLD is typically disregarded in the comparison.
- A respondent does not establish rights or legitimate interests under UDRP ¶ 4(a)(ii) where the domain name selection and use suggest affiliation with the trademark owner rather than a bona fide offering or fair descriptive use.
- Bad faith under UDRP ¶ 4(a)(iii) may be shown where the respondent, aware of the complainant’s rights, uses the domain name to divert internet users for commercial gain by creating likely confusion regarding sponsorship or endorsement (UDRP ¶ 4(b)(iv)).

## Conclusion

The panel ordered transfer of `<volvoinsurance.com>` after concluding that combining the famous VOLVO mark with “insurance” mirrored Volvo’s own branded services, misleadingly suggested official affiliation, and constituted bad-faith registration and use under the UDRP.


Volvo Trademark Holding AB v. e-motordealer Ltd., WIPO Case No. D2002-0036 (2002)