Cyber Chaos: Jaguar Land Rover Faces £485M Loss After Devastating Cyber-Attack

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has reported a staggering £485 million loss for the quarter ending in September, a stark contrast to a profit of £398 million during the same period last year. This financial strain is primarily attributed to the fallout from a serious cyber-attack that occurred in late August, prompting the automaker to shut down its computer networks and halting operations across its automated production lines for most of September and into October.

The cyber-attack significantly hampered car sales, disrupting supply chains and affecting service parts distribution. While JLR has managed to establish workarounds and has returned to normal production levels, the fiscal damage is telling, with revenues plummeting by 24% from £6.5 billion to just £4.9 billion. The company’s financial woes are compounded by US tariffs on vehicle exports and the planned discontinuation of several Jaguar models in preparation for a complete transition to an all-electric lineup.

The production shutdown at JLR has been linked to a wider decline in UK car manufacturing, reported as the lowest for September since 1952, resulting in an economic output drop of 0.17% due to the loss of 27,000 vehicles in production. JLR’s extensive supply chain, involving thousands of businesses, many of which are small and medium-sized enterprises, felt the ripple effects of the disrupted operations, leading to concerns over potential business bankruptcies.

In response, the UK government has provided loan guarantees worth up to £1.5 billion to help support JLR’s supply chain. While the company has not yet utilized these funds, it has launched its own financing scheme to assist suppliers with cash flow by offering early payments for new orders.

Amid these challenges, JLR’s Chief Executive Adrian Mardell characterized the period as incredibly difficult but emphasized a rapid recovery, stating that operations are now back to producing luxury British cars. The Chief Financial Officer, Richard Molyneux, echoed this sentiment, confirming that all production plants are operating at or near capacity, highlighting the critical role of JLR in the UK’s automotive sector and broader economy.