A study has confirmed that many UK hauliers are ‘unprepared’ for the Brexit transition date of 31st December 2020.
Haulage Exchange asked 32 exporting haulage companies about their Brexit experiences. They were also quizzed on how it will affect their businesses in the coming months and years.
The results found that the majority (62%) need to be more prepared for changes to customs checks. Meanwhile, 84% of the companies questions felt that they needed more government clarity on the key haulage issues. Just 3% of respondents reported being sufficiently prepared for when the UK officially transitions out of the EU.
Another key survey finding was that 72% of haulage companies believe they will be negatively impacted from 1st January 2021. The news comes at a time when nearly a quarter of UK hauliers admit losing business due to Brexit.
When asked by Haulage Exchange which of the changes will have the biggest impact on their operations, increased waiting time was the most popular answer (75%). Other big concerns were increased time spent in admin before border crossings (66%) and higher tariffs on goods (50%).
“With the upcoming Brexit transition deadline, our focus is to ensure users of our market-leading Freight Exchange platforms, Courier Exchange and Haulage Exchange, can continue to carry goods to and from the EU without disruption,” said Sam Wilkinson, chief revenue officer at Transport Exchange Group.
“According to our survey, delays at ports and paperwork are front of mind for carriers,” he added. To ensure they can be prepared and avoid delays we are working with industry experts to provide educational content that will be signposted directly from within our platform.”
