Dover, UK: The automatic licence verification system that should automatically clear goods through customs suffered a software failure this weekend (11-12 May) resulting in major delays to fresh food shipments.
Some trucks arriving at Sevington in Kent, that serves imports from Dover and the Channel tunnel, were delayed by more than 24 hours.
The system is supposed to automatically clear goods through customs and, according to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, deliver “a substantial time and efficiency saving for trade”. Instead, border staff and importers faced problems almost immediately, with the most acute issues last weekend particularly affecting imports from Italy.
Nigel Jenney, chief executive, Fresh Produce Association, said his members had encountered “total chaos” at the border since the weekend, with ongoing issues that will hit traders hard.
On Tuesday (14 May) a Defra spokesperson confirmed that, three days after the crash, systems were still not restored. “A power outage over the weekend affected one of the systems required to process imports. For the majority of vehicles at the border there were no significant delays, but we immediately activated contingency arrangements for affected vehicles, working alongside HMRC and Border Force.
