UK Getty Images Letter

[talbot649]

Hello,

We've received a standard Getty demand letter, for £600 for a RM image on our website. In our case, we are an independent garage and we share news articles from an industry news website on our website in the News section. The article was accompanied by an infographic - 4 or 5 blocks of text interspersed with thumbnail images, and it is one of these images which they have objected to. We hadn't hotlinked the image, we republished it.

We responded, admitting no liability and removed the image from the site and server. The news website had done the same when I checked so I'm assuming they received the same letter. I've been reading up a bit and have a load of questions I'm hoping this community can answer.

- We didn't actively source an image to use for marketing purposes, this image was one of a collection in an infographic. Would this make a difference in the law's eyes? Essentially the image was irrelevant, it could have been any other image, or absent entirely and the infographic would still have conveyed the same info.

- If they had to take this to the Small Claims Court we would happily defend ourselves, knowing that costs aren't relevant and we'd be liable for a maximum award of their claim amount. But am I right in thinking they can go straight to the High Court where costs could be crippling?

- The only mention of court action in the UK that I could find is this Coles Removals case which is shrouded in mystery - can anyone shed light on what happened here and why they went to court with this company and no others?

Grateful for any help