The animated green reptile that represents Geico on television has shown its legal teeth after a small rival auto insurer ran ads showing a gecko as road kill.
Tri-State Consumer Insurance Co. of Jericho, Long Island, N.Y., in the wake of Geico's filing suit, said it has discontinued comparative price ads in print and on radio that mocked the British-accented lizard.
Tri-State's lawyer, Richard Hofstetter with the Manhattan law firm of Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Sez said ads ended because the campaign had run its course.
According to Mr. Hofstetter Tri-State ran radio and print ads for about a week. The print advertisement headlined "Enough with the gecko already" over a drawing of an inert lizard lying on a road with tire tracks across its back. The lizard's head was not in the frame. Sound effects heard in the radio ad included a squeal of brakes and a splat sound.
The ad displayed comparison auto insurance rates showing Tri-State prices well below those of Geico.
Mr. Hofstetter said Geico reacted by filing a cease and desist notice calling the ad trademark infringement and disparagement. When Tri-State rejected Geico's contention, the company filed suit in Manhattan Federal Court and sought a preliminary injunction.
"We believe the ads were no different than any ad using a competitor's name in a comparative ad. If you look at their gecko character, it's humorous to begin with," he said adding that the Tri-State ads ended because a week "would be the normal course" for such a campaign.
Telephone calls to the Geico's Maryland headquarters drew no response yesterday, but by e-mail the company communications office said it dropped its lawsuit after Tri-State agreed in writing to remove "the offending advertisements."
"However Tri-State may have characterized its actions, the fact is that Geico's lawsuit succeeded in accomplishing its principal objective: to stop the running of advertisements that infringe upon Geico's trademark rights in its gecko character," the company said.
Geico is a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary with $68.1 million in net written premium compared to the $24.5 million that Tri-State generated last year, according to Highline Data Services.
Asked if it would have been difficult for Tri-State to take on a rival with bigger resources in a court battle, Mr. Hofstetter said "draw your own conclusions."
Geico's e-mail said it "will continue to take legal action when appropriate to protect its valuable trademark rights."
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.