TPN hurdles Irish border issues as rivals continue to struggle

TPN said it was “considerably ahead” of competitors with four trailer loads a day going to Dublin and three to Belfast with no delays in service.

The pallet firm said too many logistics operators were underestimating the level of support customers required and its investment in making IT systems “customs-functional” was now paying dividends.

Ian Large (pictured), TPN head of commercial services, said: “We have customs-integrated IT systems and we’ve set up extensive support options for customers, including a dedicated central team and brokerage support.

“This makes all the difference when you want every clearance to go smoothly.”

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TPN said it was working with partners particularly in areas such as SPS [sanitary and phytosanitary] requirements, as they were proving to be challenging for customers who failed to realise their products fell within the rules.

This week, the RHA said hauliers were still facing serious issues travelling to Ireland via Welsh ports, with problems over documentation causing a headache for exporters and resulting in lengthy delays.

But Large said TPN consolidated all its SPS products into a specific load, which could be inspected and passed for a smooth clearance with no slowdown in trade.

He credited TPN Ireland and its sister network in Dublin for their “invaluable” support and added: “Our early investment in making our IT systems customs-functional and consistent between ourselves and our EU partners has been a boon in delivering friction-free GB to Ireland freight for our customers.”