Importers cautioned against extremely cheap services
The Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders (GIFF) has cautioned importers against falling victim to clearing agents who offer extremely cheap services for the clearing of their goods at the port.
Jacob Agyemang, the Chairman of the Public Relations Committee, GIFF-Tema, giving the caution, said, “The quest for too much cheap service is the reason people are duped in the process of clearing their goods.”
Agyemang said this when he, together with Abel Todjo, Member Monitoring Committee, GIFF-Tema, appeared at a media forum powered by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) on the theme: “Identifying a Legitimate Freight Forwarder to Avoid Exploitation.”
He added that benchmark values were depending on the goods and importers must be suspicious of the values that were extremely lower than that, noting that because people wanted cheaper services, charlatans could dupe them.
He expressed worry that because of the quest for cheaper services, one Bill of Laden could pass through more than five companies as the client tried to collect invoices from many agents before choosing the cheaper one.
Touching on other red flags in selecting a freight forwarder or clearing agent, he indicated that an agent that could not be properly identified and communicated with should be dealt with caution.
“Every importer or shipper must do due diligence because you are going to engage in a transaction that involves money. We advise that you get to know the location or office of the person and question the person. There are certifications that the company or individual must have; an example is the person registered as a customs house agent. Do they belong to any freight forwarding association? Because before customs registers you as a freight forwarder, you need to belong to an association,” he said.
He added that “if there is any issue, you need to fall on the association to resolve it; if not, you are putting yourself in a big mess.”
Mr. Agyemang stated that GIFF had advised its members to make their identity known to the clients when dealing with importers and exporters and also display all registrations at their offices.
He further advised clients to follow up on such certifications and identities from the associations and agencies, such as GPHA and Customs, to verify the authenticity of the documentation as part of due diligence.
“If you go to the Customs Policy and Programme (P&P) Department, they will tell you all the registered companies. It is better to satisfy yourself with the registration because nobody can operate as a freight forwarder without them,” he said.
Abel Todjo, Member Monitoring Committee, GIFF-Tema, said some of the documentation needed by freight forwarders to operate would come from the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), GPHA, the Association, Ghana Shippers Authority, and Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT).
Todjo, touching on the responsibilities of freight forwarders, said they negotiated freight, cargo insurance, booking of cargo space, and contracts with shipping lines to secure the cargo to its final destination.
He added that they also tracked shipping cargo, engaged in housing haulage, price negotiation, and incidence claims, and managed the supply chain end-to-end.
He advised people who want to enter freight forwarding to get the necessary education, understand the customs process, and obtain the necessary documentation and experience from the right sources.