Why do you need to buy ATA Carnet security? What security options are available?

The Carnet provides a guarantee to the Customs of a foreign country into which the goods are temporarily imported that all duties, taxes etc will be paid to them if the conditions under which they allow these into the country are breached. The security is in place to protect the Business West Chamber of Commerce and Industry against foreign customs claims in cases where the Carnet has been misused and the Carnet Holder is unable to settle charges due (for example due to company liquidation).   

We offer a few different options to secure your Carnet, they are as follows: 

• Bank Draft/Cash. You can provide us with a refundable deposit. This will be a percentage of the total value of your goods which we will keep hold of until the risk of a claim has passed, then it is returned to you. The maximum period this would be kept for is 33 months. 
• Immediate cover using Aviva. Cover can be purchased from our in-house provider, Aviva. In order to choose this option you just need to fill in the Aviva Proposal form. 
• A guarantee with your own bank. You can obtain insurance through your own bank - please note that they need to be an FSA recognised bank and that we require them to fill in a form for us letting us know that you are covered. 

 Additionally, you may see the following option on Ecert: 

• Continuing guarantee – this is only for customers who have set up an annual continuing guarantee, this is for customers who apply for large amounts of Carnets every year. If this has not already been set up, then you will not be able to use this option. 

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in contact with us to discuss the best option for you: carnets@businesswest.co.uk