- 19 January 2021
Brexit Update
As you may have heard in the news last week, a number of carriers are currently no longer driving to the United Kingdom (UK). We as Mainfreight have decided to still offer daily transport to and from the UK. However, we do ask you as our customer to help us as much as possible for a smooth flow.Mainfreight has gone through the first Brexit weeks. Unfortunately, we have noticed that not all customers are equally well prepared for the Brexit and this is creating increasing challenges for us. Because the documentation is often incomplete or because data in the digital shipment does not match the data on the invoice/packing note, our crossdock is full of shipments that cannot be shipped to the UK and our employees are very busy collecting the correct documentation to be able to send the shipments.
Due to the strict lockdown in the UK, many people are working at home and it is very difficult for our partner to handle the imports. Therefore we urge you to share the contact person, phone number, email address and GB Eori number of the importer in the UK. Partly by doing this we speed up the handling in the UK. Should the importer arrange customs clearance himself with another party, please also let us know clearly and share the contact details of this with us.
Before you book the shipment with us and provide us with the data, please check whether your invoice and packing list meet all the requirements and whether the data in the digital shipment is the same as the data on the invoice/packing list so that we can continue to declare your goods.
In order to know what information should be on your invoice and packing list, we have made a checklist below so you can check if everything is on your invoice:
Data shipper/exporter
- Name, address, place of residence
- EORI number
- VAT number
- Name, address, place of residence
- EORI number
- VAT number
- preferably specific, not generic (e.g. only the description "spare parts" is not specific enough)
- amount & corresponding currency
Type & numbers / quantities of pallet type / boxes
Weights and dimensions: indicate gross and net weight separately (may also be indicated on the
packing list)
Country of origin / origin of goods
INCOTERM
Contact details of any customs agent used
The checklist above can also be downloaded here so you can print it out and tick it off again with each shipment. If any of your details are missing, if your goods description is not correct, or if your documents reach us after 16.00 hours then unfortunately we will not be able to ship your shipment to the UK. Your shipment will then be delayed.
Contact
We as Mainfreight are ready for it and will face the coming period with great confidence. The first shipments have successfully arrived and been handled in the UK. We have completely updated our Brexit website with the latest information. Here you will also find the Brexit presentation that answers the most frequently asked questions. In addition, you can find more information about transport to customs countries on the website of the European Commission (trade.ec.europa.eu/access-to-markets/en/content).Do you still have questions or would you like to talk further about the Brexit? Please contact your account manager or our customs team at brexit@nl.mainfreight.com.