Charlotte Haye 10th October 2018

What Does Brexit Mean For The Haulage Industry?

It’s been just over 2 years since the prospect of Britain leaving the EU became a reality. We’ve had a fair amount of time to get used to the idea of leaving the EU, as well as months of hearing politicians hash out the various deals they could cut when we do leave. But while the political heads do a lot of talking and arguing, things have already started to change on the ground. And for some sectors, we’ve already passed a point of no return, despite the fact that we haven’t actually left the EU yet. The haulage industry is just one of those areas where, sadly, a lot of the damage has already been done, and it’s too late to avoid the disruption that will be caused by Brexit.

Haulage Disruptions

One of the major disruptions that have come as a result of the Brexit talks is uncertainty around the future. This is the case for most sectors, but the haulage industry, in particular, is feeling the pain. Without knowledge of what the deal will be (or if we’ll even get one), haulage firms are unable to offer prices and quotes for the period after March 2019 or even answer basic questions from customers. Because leaving the EU could impact trade routes, taxes, customs fees and almost every other element of haulage, there is no way to predict how much prices and timescales will be affected.

No Progress On Fright Concerns

Early on the in the process, the FTA (Freight Transport Association) raised concerns about the impact of Brexit on Britain’s ability to trade. The FTA even gave the government a list of ways to make customs borders work after Brexit called ‘Keep Britain Trading’ (which you can read here), detailing solutions and ways to handle the new problems Brexit will bring. But James Hookham, deputy chief executive of the FTA, comments that:

“Of the eight demands in the FTA’s list of essentials to ‘Keep Britain Trading’… not a single one has been progressed.”

That’s right – not a single one of the suggestions and solutions given by haulage professionals has been taken into account by Brexit ministers. And now, Mr Hookham has said that there is no guarantee that UK haulage companies would be able to continue employing the 43,000 HGV drivers in Britain that are nationals of another EU state.

Employment Collapse

This last point is a particular cause for concern. There is already a significant shortage of qualified HGV drivers in the UK, with the 20,000 new drivers coming into the industry each year still leaving a deficit of over 50,000 skilled drivers. This skills shortage has been going on for over 5 years now, and despite efforts to rally new drivers into the profession, the haulage industry is still under significant strain. If Brexit means we will have to lose over 43,000 haulage drivers on top of that, the shortage will double, and Britain’s trade and business infrastructure could be in danger of collapse.

Of course, this is the point that a lot of industries are making. Brexit is exposing a lot of flaws in our infrastructure and forcing a lot of very unpopular changes. In the haulage industry, these few are the just the beginning. A post-Brexit future could see our roads clogged with HGV’s trying to get across the borders (since new paperwork checks for UK lorries going abroad would mean a 2 minute delay per vehicle at Dover, which would cause 17-mile tailbacks), and hundreds of thousands of qualified drivers having to either turn down work in the EU or take their qualifications all over again, since the EU would no longer recognise UK driving licenses.

At Easy as HGV, we try to stay neutral on all things politics. But Brexit has already started to cause problems in the industry, and those issues will only get worse over the coming months. Our hope is that the FTA will be able to work with the government to create a deal that will keep Britain trading, and not lead to the collapse of a vital economic industry. If you have an opinion or a question about the impact of Brexit on the haulage industry, we’d love to hear from you. Just get in touch with the team at Easy as HGV today.