U.S., UK customs authorities enhance partnership to stop illegal vehicle imports

The joint U.S. Customs and Border Protection and United Kingdom enforcement initiative is aimed primarily at non-roadworthy vehicles.    U.S. Customs and Border Protection has expanded the scope of its trade enforcement operation with United Kingdom counterparts to combat illegal vehicle trafficking.
   CBP officials signed an updated arrangement in London to share law enforcement information in order to intercept illegal vehicle imports, the agency announced late last month.
   Under the year-old “Operation Atlantic,” CBP officers at the Commercial Analysis and Targeting Center use information from UK border management agencies to target inspections of shipments suspected of containing vehicles that violate import safety laws.
   The joint operation initially focused on Land Rover Defenders and Austin Mini Coopers, but now covers all “high risk” vehicles, CBP spokesperson Katrina Skinner said.
   The Defender is an off-road utility vehicle that violates federal highway safety standards, including the requirement for airbags.
   In the past couple years, CBP has seized dozens of vehicles, often with the Vehicle Identification Number altered to make them appear older. Exemptions in federal statute allow nonconforming vehicles that are 25-years-old to be imported without restriction.
   CBP also said it has begun to leverage the Container Security Initiative in conjunction with other European counterparts to intercept suspect vehicles at foreign ports of origin and to exchange enforcement information.
   CSI ostensibly is an anti-terrorism program designed to catch weapons or other implements before they are placed on a vessel and arrive on U.S. shores. Small teams of CBP personnel are stationed in 58 overseas ports to conduct pre-screening of shipment information and request foreign customs services to pull containers that raise a red flag for non-intrusive inspections with imaging machines.