Luxury car importer $5000 out of pocket after brokerage goes bust

An Auckland car importer is $5000 out of pocket after paying a customs broker whose business then went bust. Photo / File

A car importer says he is more than $5000 out of pocket after paying a customs broker to clear a luxury car into the country at the same time the brokerage went bust.

The company, Online Logistics, is facing civil action by Customs who applied to the High Court in November to liquidate the company to recoup money owed to it.

Online Logistics was used by overseas shipping companies to import goods locally, acting as an intermediary to pay GST and duties to Customs on behalf of importers in order to clear goods into the country.

An Auckland dealer, who asked not to be identified, ordered a BMW in November through an international shipping company, and paid Online Logistics $3938 in GST, a $1300 shipping fee, and $42.82 for a customs transaction fee.

The GST was payable to Customs while the shipping fee was owed to the shipping company.

In order for importers to receive their goods customs brokers must lodge declarations and pay the associated duties and GST on behalf of clients.

After receiving word from the shipping company that it hadn't been paid, and that the BMW was waiting for clearance in Auckland, the importer said he tried unsuccessfully to contact Online Logistics.

He says he received a letter from the company in January saying it had stopped trading "due to an unforeseen financial situation, and we have been left with no option but to close down immediately". The letter instructed him to contact another company for his car.

In an email seen by the Herald on Sunday Customs told the importer they had no record of a payment by Online Logistics on his behalf, despite the company's invoice saying the payment had been made immediately.

The man had to repay $3632 in GST to clear his car - less than Online Logistics had asked for. The shipping company waived its fee a second time because of the circumstances.

The man says he has lodged a complaint with police, however a police spokesperson declined to confirm whether inquiries were under way.

Customs said it couldn't comment, except to confirm it had applied to the High Court for Online Logistics' liquidation. A hearing was held in early February.

A spokesperson said it had mechanisms it can use for "errant" customs brokers like removing their unique user code to stop them from lodging declarations or using an alerts system so they could validate authenticity of declarations.

The BMW importer said he was now "wary" of importing anything else.

"You would think these people are vetted by Customs but that doesn't seem to be the case at all."

Although customs brokers must be registered by them to be declarants, there is no public register people can rely on to choose brokers.

"It is quite concerning as it seems quite a few of these guys are complete cowboys, in an industry you would expect to be quite tightly regulated," he said.

He said Online Logistics would have been aware since November they were facing liquidation, and should never have invoiced him.

"There's no excuse for it. They should have stopped trading."

Online Logistics director Daniel Hepburn didn't respond to multiple Herald queries and his partner Abbie Hepburn declined to comment.

Companies Office records show in January Abbie Hepburn incorporated a new company, The Shipper.