What is copyright in­fringe­ment law in UK e-commerce?

Legal disputes are common in e-commerce, es­pe­cially when copy­righted images are used without per­mis­sion. Such in­fringe­ments can lead to sig­ni­fic­ant financial penalties and, in rare cases, criminal con­sequences. Acting quickly is essential so if you discover a copyright violation or receive a warning or cease-and-desist letter, you should know the right steps to take and un­der­stand your rights under UK law.

What is copyright in­fringe­ment?

Copyright in­fringe­ment occurs when someone carries out a re­stric­ted act involving protected content—such as copying an image, text, or artwork—without per­mis­sion and without an ap­plic­able statutory exception. The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA) defines the relevant rights and ex­cep­tions. At­tri­bu­tion alone does not replace per­mis­sion. Un­li­censed stock photos, copied original product de­scrip­tions, and un­au­thor­ised artwork can give rise to civil claims; criminal pro­vi­sions apply to certain more serious conduct.

Copyright chal­lenges hit UK online busi­nesses daily. But the good news is that early cease-and-desist letters and platform takedowns often resolve issues without court. Whether you’ve spotted in­fringe­ment or received a warning, knowing your legal steps prevents es­cal­a­tion.

What to do if you discover a copyright in­fringe­ment online

Confirm whether the use is in­fringing

Before taking any action, you should first confirm whether the use is genuinely un­au­thor­ised. Only the copyright owner or an exclusive licensee is entitled to enforce copyright in­fringe­ment.

Collect and preserve evidence

If you believe an in­fringe­ment has occurred, collect and preserve evidence as soon as possible. This may include screen­shots showing the in­fringing content together with the URL and date, copies of the page source or the in­fringing files, and examples of your original work for com­par­is­on. Clear evidence is crucial if the matter escalates.

Document all details and com­mu­nic­a­tion

Make written notes of when and how you dis­covered the in­fringe­ment, where the content appears online, and any attempts to contact the infringer. Keep copies of all emails and cor­res­pond­ence in your records. Well-organised doc­u­ment­a­tion strengthens your position if the dispute continues.

Options for rights holders in the UK

Cease-and-desist letters and letters before action

In the UK, en­force­ment commonly begins with a cease-and-desist letter or a letter before action. A cease-and-desist letter is a formal written notice informing the alleged infringer that they are using protected material without per­mis­sion, ex­plain­ing your legal rights, and re­quest­ing that the in­fringing use stop. It is often the first step in asserting your rights and can lead to res­ol­u­tion without court action.

This type of letter is not a court document, but it plays an important role in UK pre-action conduct. It gives the other party an op­por­tun­ity to respond, comply or negotiate before pro­ceed­ing with lit­ig­a­tion. Many busi­nesses choose to have these letters drafted or reviewed by a solicitor to ensure they are clear, accurate and legally sound.

What to include in a cease-and-desist letter

There is no statutory checklist in UK law for the contents of a cease-and-desist letter, but good practice is to include:

• Your identity and position as copyright owner or au­thor­ised rep­res­ent­at­ive
• A clear de­scrip­tion of the copy­righted material and how it is being infringed
• Evidence identi­fy­ing the in­fringing content (e.g. URLs)
• A demand that the infringer stop the use and, if ap­pro­pri­ate, remove or disable access
• A reas­on­able response deadline, taking account of urgency and com­plex­ity. For pre-action cor­res­pond­ence in England and Wales, the general Practice Direction gives 14 days for a straight­for­ward case and up to three months for a very complex one.
• An in­dic­a­tion that you may pursue court action if the issue is not resolved

Platform takedown pro­ced­ures

If the in­fringe­ment appears on a third‑party platform, such as an online mar­ket­place, social network, or other hosted service, many of these sites provide dedicated in­tel­lec­tu­al property reporting tools or ‘notice‑and‑takedown’ pro­ced­ures that rights holders can use to request removal of in­fringing content. Under these pro­ced­ures, you submit a formal complaint to the platform with evidence of your ownership and details of the in­fringing material. Well‑supported takedown requests are often processed quickly, reducing the harm caused by ongoing in­fringe­ment.

For example, large mar­ket­places and social media platforms typically have dedicated forms or portals where you can report alleged in­fringe­ment and supply the URLs, product iden­ti­fi­ers, screen­shots, or other proof required. These pro­ced­ures are designed to help platforms assess and act on in­fringe­ment claims ef­fi­ciently. If the content is hosted on an in­de­pend­ent website rather than a mar­ket­place, you may also identify the hosting provider (e.g., through WHOIS Lookup) and send a takedown notice to the host asking them to remove or disable access to the content.

Using a platform’s takedown system can often achieve faster removal than legal pro­ceed­ings and may be suf­fi­cient on its own if the issue is straight­for­ward. However, these pro­ced­ures deal only with the removal of the specific content; they do not directly resolve broader legal disputes or com­pens­a­tion claims.

Taking legal action

If informal methods such as takedown pro­ced­ures or cor­res­pond­ence do not resolve the dispute, you may need to consider formal legal action to enforce your rights.

In­tel­lec­tu­al Property En­ter­prise Court (IPEC)

For many copyright in­fringe­ment disputes in the UK, the In­tel­lec­tu­al Property En­ter­prise Court (IPEC) remains a common and cost-effective forum. IPEC is a spe­cial­ist part of the High Court of England and Wales that deals spe­cific­ally with in­tel­lec­tu­al property cases, including copyright. It was es­tab­lished to provide a more stream­lined and less expensive procedure than general High Court lit­ig­a­tion.

IPEC has multiple tracks, including a small claims track for simpler cases with lower damages (up to £10,000) and a multi-track for more sub­stan­tial claims. In the multi-track, claims of up to £500,000 in damages are generally permitted. Re­cov­er­able costs are strictly capped to make lit­ig­a­tion more ac­cess­ible: the overall costs cap for liability is £60,000, with an ad­di­tion­al £30,000 cap for inquiries into damages or accounts of profits—these limits were increased in October 2022 to better support small and medium-sized busi­nesses.

IPEC may be ap­pro­pri­ate for an in­junc­tion, damages, an account of profits, or other relief. The multi-track costs caps limit re­cov­er­able costs between parties, not what you may spend on your own legal rep­res­ent­a­tion; ex­cep­tions can apply. Small-claims costs rules differ. Even where rep­res­ent­a­tion is not mandatory, advice can help you choose the track and assess the total financial risk.

Other courts

For higher‑value or more complex IP disputes, the ordinary High Court of England and Wales may be the ap­pro­pri­ate venue. In Scotland, the equi­val­ent court for major in­tel­lec­tu­al property cases is the Court of Session, while in Northern Ireland similar pro­ceed­ings would be brought in the High Court there. These courts handle cases beyond IPEC’s cost and pro­ced­ur­al limits and can deal with complex legal and factual issues.

Deciding where to file a claim depends on the value of the case, the com­plex­ity of the issues, and the remedies sought. Formal legal advice can help you choose the most suitable forum.

Pre‑action conduct and deadlines

Before com­men­cing civil pro­ceed­ings in England and Wales, parties are expected to follow the relevant pre-action protocol or the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols. This usually involves ex­plain­ing the claim, ex­chan­ging relevant in­form­a­tion, and con­sid­er­ing set­tle­ment or al­tern­at­ive dispute res­ol­u­tion. Non-com­pli­ance can affect costs and case man­age­ment. Scotland and Northern Ireland have different pro­ced­ur­al rules, which require separate advice.

Under paragraph 6(b) of that Practice Direction, the recipient should respond within a reas­on­able period: 14 days in a straight­for­ward case and no more than three months in a very complex one. These are general pro­ced­ur­al bench­marks, not a universal deadline for every copyright letter. Urgent ap­plic­a­tions may require a different approach, and pre-action cor­res­pond­ence does not extend the lim­it­a­tion period for filing a claim.

What if you receive a copyright warning?

If you receive a letter alleging copyright in­fringe­ment, it’s important not to ignore it. Even if you believe the claim is incorrect, failing to respond can escalate the dispute and limit your options for a fa­vour­able outcome. A thought­ful, timely response helps protect your position and may prevent the situation from moving to lit­ig­a­tion.

When you receive such a letter:

• Carefully review whether the al­leg­a­tion has a basis in fact.
• Seek legal advice early to un­der­stand your rights and options.
• You can ac­know­ledge receipt of the letter and ask for ad­di­tion­al time if required.
• If you dispute the claim, explain your position clearly and support it with evidence.

Engaging con­struct­ively and within a reas­on­able timeline demon­strates good faith and can be be­ne­fi­cial if the matter later goes before a court.

Possible outcomes

Once a cease‑and‑desist letter has been sent or you receive a response, several outcomes are possible:

• The other party may comply and remove the in­fringing material.
• You might agree a licence or set­tle­ment.
• If no agreement is reached, you can pursue formal legal pro­ceed­ings.

If the matter goes to court, UK courts can grant in­junc­tions to stop the in­fringe­ment, award damages or an account of profits, and order payment of legal costs and interest. These remedies help com­pensate rights holders and prevent further un­au­thor­ised use.

Key prin­ciples under UK law

Under UK law, copyright pro­tec­tion arises auto­mat­ic­ally as soon as your original work is created and fixed in a tangible form, such as text, images, music or other creative content — there is no re­quire­ment to register the work with any gov­ern­ment office. Copyright gives the rights holder exclusive control over how their work is used, and if someone uses it without per­mis­sion you are re­spons­ible for defending those rights yourself. Remedies for in­fringe­ment are primarily civil, meaning you can ask a court to grant an in­junc­tion to stop further un­au­thor­ised use, award you damages or an account of profits, and order the return or de­struc­tion of in­fringing copies; courts also have dis­cre­tion on legal costs and interest.

In more serious cases involving de­lib­er­ate com­mer­cial‑scale in­fringe­ment, criminal sanctions — including fines or im­pris­on­ment — may arise under sections 107 and 198 of the CDPA, although these are rare for routine online disputes. Courts continue applying the core CDPA framework to emerging chal­lenges like AI training and text/data mining, with gov­ern­ment con­sulta­tions ongoing but no major le­gis­lat­ive overhaul enacted.

Please note the legal dis­claim­er relating to this article.