UK businesses turning to importing as a way of diversifying income streams during the coronavirus pandemic have been warned not turn a blind eye to product certification.
Global Freight Services, member of AerOceaNetwork based in Telford, UK, has assisted businesses across the county and further afield for more than 20 years with importation of goods from around the world.
However, the company is witnessing an unprecedented rise in inquiries from businesses which are new to importing and managing director Anton Gunter is concerned many are neglecting to check whether products have the required certification to pass through UK ports and customs checks.
“The current coronavirus pandemic is impacting on businesses large and small and as a result many are looking to diversify their income streams to remain operational,” he explained.
“Some are turning to importing and reselling and whilst this kind of flexibility and resilience is to be applauded we are becoming concerned that some people who are new to importing and international trade are not doing their research properly and are purchasing goods from abroad which don’t have the proper certification.
“This is certainly the case for PPE products and without the correct certification importers risk having their goods held up at ports and airports. In some cases goods are not being released because they fail to meet UK safety standards.
“If this happens the importer risks losing considerable amounts of money, not just on the purchase of goods but also on import fees and subsequent charges associated with disposing of the products.
“We’re aware the Government had taken steps to relax certification requirements on some goods including PPE products to make importation easier in current circumstances but in practice there does seem to be difficulties.”
Gunter urged those new to importing to seek expert advice before making costly financial decisions to purchase and import goods.
The warning comes amid reports of an 84-tonne shipment of PPE being impounded in a Government warehouse near Heathrow Airport because of non compliance with UK safety regulations. The consignment, which contains 400,000 medical gowns, was flown from Turkey to the UK.
A spokesperson for UK freight forwarding associaton BIFA said: “While talking about PPE, a number of BIFA Members have encountered difficulties with this material and also with medical supplies, perhaps dealing with it for the first time.
“Certainly, some of the routings we have seen are multiple transhipment points with (in some cases) inspections and detention of goods supposedly in transit. Other problems emerging include forged conformity certificates and fake or non-compliant products.
“It seems regular importers are sometimes branching out into this traffic outside of their regular business. With a lack of experience in this new product, the importers can create problems and, as is often the case, the forwarder can be stuck in the middle.”
The basic problems appear to be that the goods are:
- Non-compliant against order
- Importers unfamiliar with regulations
- Have not been inspected by a laboratory/organisation recognised by the EU, therefore, the accompanying documents are incorrect/invalid.
- Chinese regulations are unclear Members have referred to white/blacklists
