Trade Board reinstates Japanese auto inspector

Dr Hugh Blake, trade administrator and CEO at the Trade Board Limited (TBL), says a new contract with Auto Terminal Japan (ATJ) commenced on February 1, 2024, and will run for five years, ending on January 29, 2029.

The Trade Board, through its communications unit, said on Tuesday, January 29, that six bids were received and “in response to the Request for Proposal for Pre-Shipment Inspection, Sanitisation and Quarantine Services for used motor vehicles, AutoTerminal Japan was selected to provide pre-shipment inspection, sanitisation and quarantine services”.

The company will be the only authorised entity to provide quarantine, pre-inspection and sanitisation services for used cars. These include electric, standard and automatic vehicles.

The Trade Board says that ATJ is offering speedier service, based on several new elements, including e-certificates and faster screening, indicating that it has embarked on a new commitment to service.

“The TBL is embarking on a robust and customer-focused approach to service. This includes strengthening outsourced services that impact our customers. As such, the expansion of the speed of services offered by ATJ on behalf of the Government of Jamaica is expected through an increased fleet of mobile inspection units; the introduction of a mobile app that will allow the ease of booking and tracking of pre-shipment inspections; and the provision of an e-certificate, which will significantly reduce the issuing time for a certificate after an inspection.”

On October 9, 2023, the Board told the Financial Gleaner it would open the bidding services to multiple service providers, adding that increasing service providers would “ensure value for money by allowing ourselves to assess various service providers to select the one that offers the best value for money, reduce the possibility of favouritism, provide greater transparency and equal opportunity for every provider, and meet changing needs, e.g., in this instance, greater geographic coverage”.

It also stated that it will “enhance accountability and public trust by demonstrating that the contracts are awarded based on fair and objective criteria”.

Lynvalle Hamilton, president of Jamaica Used Car Dealers Association, told the Financial Gleaner in October 2023, “One inspector has caused a lot of delays. They were overwhelmed with inspections not done properly.”

Continuing, he said: “We should get to the point where we have multiple pre-inspection facilities. It would allow us options and reduce delays. Delays from our suppliers and dealers are, like, three or four months. Because of that, vehicles were more expensive because suppliers factor the delays, incurring storage.”

Hamilton opined that there was one approved pre-inspector because the main market is Japan.

“We also import from the United states (US), Dubai, Australia and other countries. These other countries do not have the delays associated with Japan,” he noted.

For cars imported from the US, he said that the standards are high and car reports are usually trusted.

Pre-inspection was introduced by the Government in 2018 in order, it was said at the time, to deal with reports of tampering of motor vehicle odometers to reflect lower mileages, and other irregularities.

Auto Terminal was the first company appointed, and local car dealers complained of extensive delays in processing, which had financial consequences.

After the bidding process, which began in October, the government agency announced on January 14 that the sole Japanese provider had been reinstated.

Bids for services were not confined to vehicles/equipment coming from Japan.

This pre-shipment inspection falls under the Motor Vehicle Import Policy, which was adopted on April 3, 2014.

It entails the physical inspection of goods being conducted in the country of export prior to shipping, so as to establish the exact nature of the goods.

For motor vehicles, it seeks to ascertain the history of the vehicle (accidents, major repairs), conformity to age limit (model year), road worthiness, radioactive/microbial contamination and odometer reading.

Source: The Gleaner