Jaguar Land Rover Reports £485m Pre-Tax Loss Following Cyber Attack
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) reported a pre-tax and exceptional items loss of £485 million for the three months to September, compared to a £398 million profit in the same period the previous year. This significant downturn follows a cyber-attack at the end of August that disabled its computer networks and halted production lines through September and into early October, though production has since returned to normal.
The quarter's revenue fell 24% to £4.9 billion, mainly due to the production stoppage, US tariffs, and the phasing out of Jaguar models ahead of an all-electric relaunch. Cyber-related costs amounted to £196 million, covering expenses such as external consultants and other support in response to the attack.
In September, UK car production reached its lowest level for the month since 1952, contributing to a 0.17% drag on overall UK economic output according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The UK government provided guarantees of up to £1.5 billion to support supplier loans; however, JLR has not drawn on these funds. The company also established a supplier-financing scheme to accelerate early payments for new orders.
CEO Adrian Mardell described the period as incredibly difficult but emphasized that operations are recovering and that the company is back to producing luxury British cars. CFO Richard Molyneux added that operations are now basically back to normal, with plants operating at or near capacity.
