Export Delays

Ports around the world are struggling with congestion meaning it is taking a lot longer to get containers onto vessels.

The congestion is due to a number of issues but mainly the imbalance of containers across the world. Usually container shipping & logistics is an extremely well oiled machine, when things stop however, it quickly goes south.

In the last year obviously Covid has created port slowdowns, but also the number of vessels has decreased for Covid precautions and staff shortages.

Trade issues with China between the EU / US and Northern Africa have left containers inn places where they wouldn’t usually build up.

We even had the Ever Given getting stuck in the Suez canal to add to the shipping industry woes

Timescales for clearing customs and loading onto a vessel out of the USA for example have increased from around 2 weeks to around 4-8 weeks in some cases.

Port Congestion

Congestion in the UK has been a problem since Brexit but even now in July 2021 it is still a huge issue with many vessels simply skipping the UK, unloading in Europe and then bringing containers back to our shores on smaller feeder vessels (a process called transshipment)

The USA has seen huge port congestion at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in particular with around 40 cargo vessels at any one time anchored off the cost waiting to unload.

Why?

Well a lot of it has to do with demand. People have been buying a lot of stuff and having it imported. Plus, they have not been exporting much. The UK is importing a lot of goods, yet has reduced many exports.

The USA has an imbalance of 4:1 on imports to exports, the highest levels ever recorded. Meaning ports are under the strain to get containners unloaded.

Getting containers unloaded has been difficult with many workers off due to Covid, or who have changed jobs due to the pandemic.

Even haulage has suffered with many container lorry drivers switching to other driving industries with better hours and pay e.g. Amazon

Car Shipping

So how does this affect the car shipping process?

Well it does have an impact, and we try to keep anyone looking at shipping a car as informed estimate on leadtimes as is possible at the time of making a booking.

In general we are looking at a few extra weeks overall for the shipping. Not ideal, but your car will arrive as close to the ETA as we can give.

Our live container tracking system in our client portal works even if a shipment is transhipped so you can keep track of where it has been and where it is next to visit.

DVLA Delays

The DVSA had their moments with IVA testing suspended but we can appreciate they didn’t have much choice when Covid showed up.

The DVLA almost got back to normal, then they decided they were not happy with the working conditions at Swansea and started industrial action that has been going on for weeks now.

They are now up to around six weeks to register a car, we can ship a car from Australia in less time. All the while the people waiting for their registrations are left without a vehicle.

We chase as much as we can on timings of each application.

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So how will this affect car shipping and UK car imports?

Car Import Duty / VAT

A trade agreement was reached meaning you will not have to pay any duty on importing a car into the UK. You will however have to pay VAT on the value of the car you are bringing here.

For example, you are buying a £10,000 Toyota from Germany, you will be liable for £2,000 worth of VAT @ 20%

However, if the vehicle is over thirty years of age, say a nice classic Porsche from Germany. Then there is a reduced rate of VAT at just 5%

It gets even better if you are relocating to the UK from Europe. If you can prove you lived outside the UK at least 12 months and owned the car at least 6 months, then it will be subject to zero VAT and zero duty. This is the HMRC Transfer of Residence scheme

Customs Clearance

Following Brexit customs clearance procedures have changed.

First, you need to ensure the vehicle has been correctly exported from the European country. You will ned the paperwork to prove this on import to the UK.

A proper customs entry must then be carried out (C384 / ToR) and submitted via a customs agent to HMRC

You will then receive confirmation all is good in the way of a NOVA letter, which can be used to register the car with the DVLA.

Car Imports by a Company

From 1st January 2021 (after the transition period), if you are importing the vehicle to the UK as a VAT registered company, you will need to have an EORI number that starts with GB

Vehicle Type Approval

During the Transition Period the EU type approval rules will still apply. In the UK up until 1 January 2021 the existing VCA rules will remain. Therefore, the VCA will continue to act as an EU Technical Service and EU Type Approval Authority. This means that the VCA can continue to issue EU approvals (‘e11’) and they will continue to be accepted in the EU.

UK and EU technical standards will be aligned immediately after 31 December 2020

IVA / MSVA Testing

Following the transition period it is likely type-approvals issued in the UK will no longer be valid for sales or registrations on the EU market.

We would imagine current IVA rules to be continued into 2021

Exchange Rates

A strong GBP will help all stages of purchasing and importing a car into the UK.

From the initial purchase of the vehicle to shipping costs which are billed in USD, the strength of UK currency will make an impact to your car shipping process.

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