Businesses and hauliers trading between Great Britain and the EU
have been urged to ensure they meet necessary requirements before
travelling to the border, as the Government warns that expected
traffic could increase next week.
Exporters must provide the right documentation to hauliers,
including export declarations and the extra certificates needed
for products like plant and animal products, and hauliers heading
to Kent must get a negative Covid test and obtain a Kent Access
Permit before heading to port, or risk facing a fine and being
turned away.
Since the end of the transition period the flow of lorries
heading through Kent to the GB-EU border has been low. Over the
last week there has been an average of 1584 lorries
per day attempting border crossings, which is only around 40% of
historical norms. This time last year, we were seeing an average
of 4067 lorries crossing the border each day.
Compliance has also been relatively high with around 700
lorries turned away from the border since the end of the
transition period - the majority of which were based on the lack
of a negative covid test. We’ve also seen strong compliance with
the requirement to obtain a Kent Access Permit with 18,000 issued
in total so far.
The combination of low border traffic, and good compliance,
has kept disruption at the border to a minimum.
However, we are seeing the volume of HGV traffic steadily
increase by around 20% each day. As a result from next week we
are expecting that volumes will reach their business as usual
levels for this time of year, which equates to around 5000-6000
vehicles per day. This means border and trader readiness is
critical. By the fourth week of January we expect to see around
40,000 trucks heading to France each week.
These increased flows have the potential to cause
significant disruption if traders and hauliers have not taken the
necessary steps to comply with the new rules.
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said:
“I’d like to thank hauliers, traders and our key industry
partners for the hard work they have been putting in to make sure
that they are compliant with the new rules.
“The preparations they have made have paid dividends and
disruption has been minimal so far, but the real challenge and
potential for significant disruption starts next week when we
expect that the number of lorries heading to the border may
return to normal levels.
“We have always been clear there would be
changes now that we are out of the customs union and single
market, so full compliance with the new rules is
vital to avoid disruption, and the best way to ensure readiness
is to follow the guidance on gov.uk and use the
‘Check an HGV’
service.
“We stand ready to help keep goods flowing smoothly as we
adjust to our new relationship with the EU and ensure we take
advantage of the opportunities it brings.”
Exporters must provide the right documentation to hauliers
- including export declarations and the extra certificates needed
for things like plant and animal products - to avoid goods being
held up at the border.
Hauliers heading to Kent must get a negative COVID test
within 72 hours of crossing and obtain a Kent Access Permit
before heading to port. They can get the permit and find out what
documents traders should give them by using the Check a
HGV is ready service on Gov.uk.
Failure to secure either a test or Kent Access Permit will
mean the driver cannot cross the border, and, in the case of the
Kent Access Permit, will be fined £300. Around 150 fines have
already been handed out due to non-compliance with the Kent
Access Permit requirement, and for attempting to queue jump at
the border.
For full details on what you need to do to comply with the
new procedures, please visit www.gov.uk/transition.
