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Nigeria Auto Mart
Testimonial
Buying a Used Car in
Nigeria
Cost of Clearing a Car in Nigeria
Quotes from Other Clearing Agents
Car Dealers in Nigeria
Find Cars and Jeeps on NairaCarDealers.com
Shipping
A Container to Nigeria (New)
UPDATE.
Feb 3, 2010: Instead of a Social Security Number, the US
Customs now require a Tax ID to ship a car. So you will need a
Tax ID if you plan to ship your car by yourself. If you are
shipping through an agent, you don't have to worry about that.
SUMMARY (SHIPPING A CAR THROUGH AN AGENT)
-
Find a shipping agent in your area
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Complete the agent's paper work
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Give him the car, keys and original title
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You may be required to pay the shipping fee immediately or when the ship leaves (currently $1400 - $1600 for cars)
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Once the bill of lading is ready, the agent will call you for pick-up
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Make a copy of the bill of lading and send the originals immediately to your clearing agent preferably by courier.
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Your clearing agent clears the car from the Port
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This whole process may take up to 3 months
SUMMARY (SHIPPING A CAR BY YOURSELF)
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Find a shipping broker e.g.
Sallaum Group
-
Download their application form called
Docket Receipt
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Complete the docket receipt and fax or email it to the shipping broker
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The broker will process and send it back to you in 1 - 2 days.
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Make 6 copies of the docket receipt and 6 copies of the car title front and back
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Take your car and paper work to the Port
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The Port staff will give you a receipt confirming that your car was accepted for shipping
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The broker then sends you a bill for the shipping
(Sallaum Group charges
$1100 $1050 $1000
$850 for cars and $1100 for regular SUVs, as from
January, 2012)
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Once you make payment, they will mail your bill of lading to you
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Make a copy of the bill of lading and send the originals immediately to your clearing agent preferably by courier.
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Your clearing agent clears the car from the Port
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This whole process may take up to 3 months.
THE
ADVENT OF USED CARS IN NIGERIA:
Back in the late 70s and early 80s, the average Nigerian could
afford a brand new car. In those days, the cars prevalent on
the roads were the Peugeout 504 and 505 models among others.
They were reliable and met the practical and aesthetic needs
of many Nigerians.
However,
with the introduction of the Structural Adjustment Program
(SAP) in the mid 80s, the value of the Nigerian currency (the
Naira) took a tumble. This resulted in severe inflation and
soon it became virtually impossible for the average Nigerian
to afford a new car (including those manufactured locally).
Since then, new cars have become the exclusive reserve of
corporations and very wealthy individuals.
With
the enterprising spirit of Nigerians, they soon devised a
means of filling the void in the car market. This involved the
importation of used cars called “Tokunboh” from Europe
especially Germany, Belgium and The Netherlands.
Unfortunately, this market was not regulated and as a result,
the Nigerian roads became flooded with “Tokunboh” cars in
un-safe mechanical conditions.
To bring
the situation under control, the Obasanjo administration
stipulated that no car older than 10 years should be imported
into Nigeria. Exceptions were made for buses and heavy duty
trucks. This practice was retained by the succeeding
Yar’Adua administration and is still the law today.
A NOTE
TO THE SHIPPER:
Shipping a car to Nigeria from the USA is relatively easy and
safe. If you are shipping a car for your personal use and do
not intend to sell it at some point, then it does not matter
what type of car you buy. However, if you are shipping a car
for sale, there is an important point you have to bear in
mind: Though Nigerians do not have much of a car industry, they
are nevertheless very choosy.
There are
certain models and specifications that are hard to sell. For
instance, people in the car business in Nigeria advice against
shipping cars that are white or military green in color or
have V6 engines or tinted glasses or manual transmissions (ie
hand gear). They also advice against shipping these models: Toyota Camry 2002 – 2006
(surprise, surprise), Toyota
Sequoia, Mercedes Benzes especially the ML, Hummer H1 and
H2,
most GM, Ford and Chrysler vehicles (for lack of spare parts)
etc.
On the
other hand, the dealers I spoke to recommend these vehicles as
long as they are less than 10 years old: most Honda vehicles
except the Odyssey, Toyota Camry
1999 – 2001 and 2007
onward, Toyota 4Runner with auxiliary gear,
Landcruiser and Sienna,
Volkswagen Beetle New
Model,
Infiniti QX4 etc. Your vehicle will be more attractive to
buyers if it has the following options: leather seats, alloy
wheels (called rim in Nigeria), DVD, remote keys etc.
It is
important to note that the suggestions above are dealer
specific. Other dealers may and in fact do have different
opinions. For instance, a dealer once stated that Mitsubishi
Gallant sells well in Nigeria while another dealer said that
is not the case.
Before you
buy a car for sale, call your contact in Nigeria and seek
his/her opinion. Make sure your contact is descent and
trustworthy. Some people will tell you to ship any car even
when they know it will be hard to sell. They may only be
interested in their own personal gains not yours.
THE
SHIPPING PROCESS:
The easiest way to ship a car to Nigeria is through a shipping
agent. All you have to do is drop the car with the keys and
title at his office and he will do the rest.
Depending
on your location, most agents charge between $1400 and $1600
to ship a car from the US to Lagos via the Roll On Roll Off (RORO)
method. This means that your car will sail in an open ship not
containerized. The price for trucks and SUVs is higher.
But if you
have the time, you can save yourself a few hundred dollars by
bypassing the shipping agent. All you have to do is call a
shipping broker e.g Sallaum
Group or better yet, download their docket receipt request
form here.
Fill it and email or fax it to them. They will process and
send it back to you sometimes within 24 hours.
The docket
receipt is valid for about 25 days (verify this from the
broker). If you are unable to bring your car to the Port
within 25 days, you have to contact Sallaum
Group for an updated docket receipt. This has happened to
us once and in that case, we got an updated docket receipt
within one day.
Make 6
copies of the docket receipt and 6 copies of the vehicle title
front and back. When you are ready, take your vehicle along
with the documents and original title to the designated port
(see complete Sallaum
Group requirements here).
Remember, the US customs do not allow cars with goods or other
materials loaded in the trunk or elsewhere. However, they will
allow spare parts meant for the car only. You will be given a
receipt indicating that your vehicle was accepted. If done
correctly, this can save you a lot of money.
A few days
after the ship sails, the broker will send you a bill for the
shipment. Once they receive your payment, they will send the
Bill of Lading along with the original title. Make a copy of
the Bill of Lading and send the original to your clearing
agent in Nigeria as soon as possible.
It is
advisable to use a courier service like FEDEX
or UPS. In the state of Maryland, FEDEX
appears to be cheaper than UPS. For instance sending a 4 page
Bill of Lading to Lagos costs around $83 at FEDEX
while UPS charges
around $100. Remind the FEDEX
staff that you want International Economy. Delivery to Lagos
usually takes 5 – 10 days.
TRANSIT
TIME:
Once a ship leaves the Port it usually takes 3 to 4 weeks to
get to Lagos unless it makes other stops. Once you drop off
your vehicle at the Port, a reasonable transit estimate will
be 1 – 3 months (may be longer during rush periods like
Christmas).
However,
once the ship gets to Lagos, the story does not end there. It
might take several weeks to off load. This is where your
clearing agent takes over. Call him frequently for updates. If
not, he might leave your car and work on other pressing
shipments.
Cost of
clearing a car depends on the year and make. For instance it
costs between 230,000 to 250,000 Naira to clear a 2003 Honda
Accord while it costs around 350,000 Naira to clear a 2007
Accord. These rates are not fixed. Your agent might charge
higher or lower depending on several factors including
personal relationship.
RORO AND
WHARF RATS:
Nigerian ports used to be filled with “wharf rats”. These
are criminals who specialize in stripping parts from vehicles
shipped to Nigeria. At some point, the problem became so
severe that most cars shipped to Nigeria were guaranteed to
have some parts stolen. Security at the Ports has now been
tightened and the wharf rats have disappeared.
Unfortunately,
a few of them have started rearing their ugly heads again.
They no longer go for the bumpers, head lights or tail lights
which are bulky and easy to detect. Rather they steal
expensive parts inside the car like the air-conditioner knobs,
expensive engine parts, etc. That notwithstanding, most cars
shipped via RORO arrive safely with no parts stolen.
By The
NigeriaDigest.Net Team
(Darlington Ihekwo, JB Motors and Ingram Osigwe contributed to
this article).
Updated August 27, 2009
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