How to Send a Car to Sri Lanka from UK

If you know anything about the Sri Lankan vehicle market you will know that it is awash with cheap Indian made vehicles. You can’t blame the consumers because those are most usually the most affordable vehicles out there, given the Sri Lankan tax rates. But if you are able to realize the benefits of a importing your own car or the method of how to send a car to Sri Lanka from the UK you just might have a chance to own a much better type of vehicle for the cash you have on hand.
Traditionally Sri Lankans know that the best vehicles with the best standards and safety come from either the Japanese market or the European Market. When it comes to the European market the UK market is special because it is the only market in Europe that has right-hand driving vehicles. So, if you are able to figure out a way on how to send a car to Sri Lanka from UK, you will be able to own your dream car very easily.

How to Send a Car to Sri Lanka from UK

The best way to get a car from UK to Sri Lanka is by finding an experienced, renowned vehicle exporter who operates from the UK.  There will be quite a number of operators out there who might claim they are able to bring the vehicle you require much cheaper than others, but you have to make sure you find out about the reputation and the number of years that particular operator has been in the business.

Find the right vehicle

Now we’ll go step by step on how to send a car to Sri Lanka from UK. Once you have selected a particular operator, contact them and communicate to them the details about the make, model and year of the car you want. Afterwards they will go and see if they have such a vehicle available, if not they will source the vehicle and present it to you.

Get the Vehicle Information from the Agent

The next step will be for the operator to give you the full information and history of the vehicle they sourced for you. This information will include the make and model of the vehicle,  whether it is used or brand new, it’s options and features and if whether it has any issues. The best operators will usually conduct this presentation live, using a video calling app like Skype or Viber, where you will be able to view the vehicle live. The presentation will be conducted by an agent of the exporter who will answer any questions you will have. If your exporter is reputed, and responsible, they will present you with an official quality report of the car, issued by an independent engineer based on an inspection done on the vehicle.
This is also the time when they will present you with the CIF price.

Get the CIF price

The CIF price is one of the main things, if not the main thing, when deciding on how to send a car to Sri Lanka from the UK. CIF price is the total amount that you will have to spend in order to get your car delivered to Sri Lanka. This includes the price of the vehicle, the charges for the paperwork and procedures necessary to get the car shipped from the UK and lastly the shipping charges itself.
Once you and the agent agree upon a CIF price the operator will issue a document called the Pro-forma Invoice. The Pro-forma Invoice is a temporary invoice that lists the agreed upon price for the selected product and also the bank or payment details to which the payment should be made to. Usually when this Pro-forma Invoice is issued, the vehicle you selected will be reserved by the operator so that it won’t be available for purchase by another party.

How to make the payment

Once you get the Payment details you can go ahead with the payment. Usually all the details you need to complete the payment can be found on the Invoice itself. The next step is very important. When you make the payment, you don’t directly deposit the money into the operator’s account. This is because at the end of the day, you are still dealing with an entity you have not dealt with previously. What you do is go to a reputed bank, deposit the money there, pending final release to the operator’s account and get an LC or a Letter of Credit from them. This is like a temporary account that stores your money, which you can release to the operator’s account once the vehicle has been delivered to you without any issues.

When you get the LC, email the proof of the payment to the Exporter. Once you do that they will start the vehicle export process from the UK. Once the official paperwork is done the exporter will ship the car in either a container or a RORO vessel bound for Sri Lanka. Make sure they have used the services of a good shipping and logistics company with a good international reputation, because not all shipping companies can be guaranteed to ensure safe transport of your vehicle. One the Ship bearing your vehicle has left the UK, the exporter will confirm the shipment and send you the details of the shipment so that you can anticipate its arrival in Sri Lanka.

Delivery and Clearing

Now we have come to the final step of how to send a car to Sri Lanka from UK, and that is the clearing of the vehicle at the port. Once the ship carrying your car has arrived at either the Colombo or Hambantota port, you will have to clear it. Now some exporters will have a local representative to help you clear your vehicle and most usually the fee for that service has already been added to the CIF price. But if you feel that you can get it done by someone you know and trust personally you can use him or her. You should however inform that to your exporter when you agree on the CIF price.

Once all the paperwork and procedures have been completed you can now drive away in your very own dream car.  This is the advantage you have when you figure out how to send a car to Sri Lanka from UK. You can get your very own car at a much reduced cost when you do.