CHECKS by Nigerian Tribune has revealed that close to 100 percent of the vehicles that come into Nigeria, as import units are accidental, salvaged or used vehicles.
Checks at Ports and Terminal Multiservices Limited (PTML), Nigeria’s largest vehicle importing port terminal revealed that most of the vessels being expected at the port terminal are coming as used and accidental vehicles.
According to the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Daily Shipping Position, a vessel called “Grande Luanda” arrived the PTML Terminal on Monday, 16th 2023 with 400 units of used vehicles, the cargo was handled by Grimaldi Agency Nigeria.
Also, another vessel; Grande Angola arrived at the PTML terminal on Friday October20, 2023 with another set of 350 units of used and accidented vehicles.
Further checks revealed that a ship known as Republica Argentina would also be coming on Friday, October 27, 2023 with 300 units of used and accidented vehicles.
Speaking with the Nigerian Tribune, a former President of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Chief Eugene Nweke explained that due to cheap cost of accidented and used vehicles, Nigerian importers prefer to import these types of vehicles since they attract same Customs duty as new vehicles.
“The cost of used, accidented or salvaged vehicles are very cheap abroad compared to the cost of new vehicles.
“The rate used to calculate Customs duty for used and new vehicles are the same thing once the vessel arrives our ports so it pays importers more to go to insurance yards in United Kingdom or United States of America to bring in accidented or used vehicles as import units.
“So, if an importer buys an accidented vehicle from the UK or the US at a very cheap rate and brings it in as import unit of vehicles, after paying the Customs Duty which will be cheaper because the vehicle is used or accidented, all that remains is to put the vehicle into shape by getting the needed spare parts, and selling it as new vehicle.
“In this manner, the importer makes more money because he has saved so much by getting the vehicles cheap from UK or US because they are not new but used or accidented vehicles.
“Over there (abroad), the cost of salvaged or accidented vehicles is very cheap compared to the cost of new vehicles,” Chief Eugene Nweke told the Nigerian Tribune.
The National President of the Association of Motor Dealers of Nigeria (AMDON), Mr Ajibola Adedoyin, also explained that bringing in salvaged and accidented vehicles is far cheaper compared to bringing in brand new vehicles.
“Why we have so much of used and accidented vehicles at our ports is because it is cheaper to buy these types of vehicles abroad.
“If an importer goes to buy brand new vehicles and brings them here, it will be far too expensive because the cost of buying over there and then clearing at our ports will be too high.
“Imagine if a brand-new vehicle costs $17,000 in the US, and you see a used or accidented type of same vehicle for $11,000, you will prefer to buy the accidented vehicle because over there, they abandon or label a vehicle accidented once the door, booth or windscreen is damaged. The engine will still be working perfectly, and they will say it’s accidented.
“As an importer, if you buy such vehicle and bring it here, you won’t spend up to a thousand Dollars to put the vehicle in good shape and will still sell for the equivalent of the amount of a new one. So, you make so much gain by selling accidented vehicles here than selling new vehicles.
“Who is even going to buy new vehicles from you going by our present economic situation? The purchasing power in Nigeria is very low due to our economic woes, so it pays to deal in used or accidented vehicles than brand new vehicles for now in Nigeria,” the AMDON National President told the Nigerian Tribune exclusively.
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