Speaking at a press conference last week, Myanma Port Authority (MPA) joint managing director U Kyaw Myint said that since the imported car market opened in 2011, about 34,700 vehicles have fallen victim to robbery or accidents before they even make it to the dealership. As a result, buyers are forced to settle for taking in vehicles with missing or damaged parts.
“Importers should beware when they order cars online. Sometimes the drivers steal or destroy parts while driving the cars from ship to yard, and they tell importers the parts were lost in the port. Importers should check the vehicle carefully,” he said.
He said that of those vehicles reported with missing parts, 50pc lose parts before they even reach Myanmar’s ports, while another 35pc lose parts while being driven to the dealership from the shipping yard.
Missing items can include CD players, in-car televisions, rear-view mirrors and other accessories, he said.
Importers claim there is no check-list system in the exporting countries to ensure that cars are complete when being prepared for shipping to Myanmar, while the MPA said they cannot be held responsible for losses sustained before the cars arrive.
In an effort to limit theft at the ports, the MPA said it will install CCTV cameras and additional security checkpoints at the pontoon bridges where the cars are parked, as well as provide an inspection checklist for importers, who can report any discrepancy.
In the meantime, car dealers told The Myanmar Times that they continue to be on the losing end of rampant theft and are often forced to compensate their clients.
“I faced the problem that car keys or spare parts are lost. We explain the theft to the customers and sometimes they don’t accept it, so we give compensation,” said U Soe Htun, a representative from Farmer Auto.
Others, meanwhile, found ways to work around the issue.
“We never really face that problem because we always use DHL to carry the spare parts although sometimes the companies from importing countries do not want to pay to put spare parts in the mail,” said Ko Win Ko, managing director of Win Ko Auto.
“In that case, importers can complain to the ports with the complete documentation, but they will wait for more than two weeks,” he said.
Between 2011 and the end of 2013, more than 231,608 cars entered Myanmar ports, according to MPA data.
source: The Myanmar Times
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