A tech enthusiast, Mr. Farinto Jones has decried the federal government’s Vehicles Identification Number (VIN) system for the valuation of imported vehicles, which is currently being implemented by the Nigerian Customs Service.
According to Farinto, the policy if not reviewed is capable of undermining e-haling services in the country as the majority of people doing e-hailing services use imported vehicles below 2011, explaining that with the Vehicles Identification Number (VIN) system, it has become difficult to see 2009 vehicle in the system; the least you can see is 2013.
“Personally, I urge the government to review the policy, as most of these vehicles the policy is affecting are below 2011 and are usually used for e-hailing business by young Nigerians,” he said.
He believes that the harsh economy is one of the reasons why older vehicles are flooding the country.
“So, we are now telling them that the policy is 12-year-old. They should bend backward to 2011 and I think they are working on that. So, if you succeed in bringing in anything less than that, you should be ready to pay the duty of 2013 for a vehicle that is less than the 2013 model. The policy is that private vehicles coming into the country cannot be older than 12 years while commercial vehicles can be up to 15 years,” he told the Punch Newspaper.
The federal government through the Nigerian Customs Service had introduced the Vehicles Identification Number system for the valuation of imported vehicles. The essence is to ensure uniformity of duties on imported used vehicles of the same year, company and model.