FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Your vehicle is fully insured from when it leaves the UK vendor to arrival in New Zealand.

When the vehicle arrives at the port of Felixstowe in the UK you recieve a signed & dated 'Vehicle Gate in Report', which comprises of detailed photos, any marks, scratches or dents highlighted pre-shipping and inclusions (items such as handbooks, wheel nuts, spare keys etc) noted. 

This then forms the basis of an accurate guide as to whether any new damage has occured in transit, or if items have gone missing.

So far, none of the vehicles we have brought in have required any insurance claim due to damage incurred during the shipping phase, nor has anything gone missing - (this included one of our clients stowing a nice new set of 20" BMW wheels inside their new vehicle!)..

From when we find your perfect vehicle, the process usually takes 7-9 weeks for your vehicle to arrive in New Zealand.

Then allow 1-2 weeks for it to go through compliance, Specialist Vehicles NZ to sort the SatNav conversion, registration, give your vehicle a comprehensive valet, and arrange delivery to your door - anywhere in NZ.

Once your vehicle has been delivered to your nominated Compliance centre, allow 2-3 days for this stage. 

If any issues are spotted at this stage, then these are highlighted, brought to your attention and can be often dealt with (fixed) by the Compliance centre at the time - but would increase this timeframe.. 

Once successfully through Compliance, allow another 2 days for registration, valet and delivery if within the Auckland-wide area.. 

We facilitate the purchase of your new vehicle, and charge a fixed fee based on services selected, including but not limited to the following:

• Access to thousands of European vehicles on any given day (we have unique access to Lease companies, and Auction houses whereby we can obtain vehicles at Wholesale rates)
• Assist with the reclamation of VAT - upfront
• Collection from UK vendor & delivery to the port of Felistowe
• Shipping
• Delivery to your local Compliance centre
• Delivery from Compliance centre to your door if outside Auckland)
• Comprehensive Vehicle Valet
• Attach Registration plates and make sure your vehicle has a full tank of fuel
• Apply a Mechanical Warranty to the vehicle
• Assist with arranging vehicle finance once vehicle is in NZ

If you find a vehicle that you like the look of then please provide us the link to the website.

We will investigate a number of things:

• Is it VAT Qualifying?
• What is the vehicles condition - including full underbody inspection, brake discs, tyres etc
• Servicing and maintenance history
• If the vendor is reputable

Once we've ascertained this, using our locally-based person and UK contacts, then we'll present our findings back to you, along with a recommendation. 

Quite simply, one of the key reasons for using Specialist Vehicles NZ to find your new car, is that we are setup and ready to facilitate your UK vehicle purchase, without you paying the UK VAT upfront.

Once we've finished negotiating the purchase price of the vehicle on your behalf and you've paid the deposit, then you'll receive an invoice which is Net of VAT.

This means you dont have to shell out for the full price and then go through the time, and hassle of reclaiming the VAT through HM Revenue & Customs. This can often take 3-6 months, and be difficult being based in New Zealand.

We use a company called AutoHub to ship your vehicle. They are an award-winning, locally based, shipping and logistics business that look after the shipping of the vehicle from the port of Felixstowe in UK, right through to delivery to your nominated Compliance centre. 

Other services they arrange are the Gate-in-Reports, Bio-secuirty screening in the UK before vehicle is loaded into a container, and pre-clearing the vehicle with NZ Customs before leaving the UK. 

Working with Specialist Vehicles NZ - whom have an established and great relationship with AutoHub, provides cost advantages, whilst enjoying all the benefits of a 'one-stop-shop' for the shipping and delivery process. 

The perception in New Zealand about UK vehicles having issues with rust, is both true and false. Yes, the UK uses salt on the roads to de-ice - this is mainly used the further north you go. 

Issues with rust usually dont appear until a vehicle is older then 5 years, however even then we have seen older vehicles rust-free. We recommend purchasing a vehicle less than 5 years old to all but eliminate the risk.

However rest assured, one of the first checks we would facilitate on your behalf is a comprehensive under-body inspection.

You pay a deposit for the vehicle to Specialist Vehicles NZ Ltd - this secures your vehicle. We work with our UK-based VAT reclamation company, who generates an invoice to you for the balance of your car Net VAT (i.e your purchase price wont include VAT). 

You then pay this invoice via an International Money Transfer (IMT) from either your bank, or a recommended Foreign Exchange business. If you wish to use our preferential exchange rate agreement with the ASB bank then this can be organised.  

The IMT takes 2-3 days and once recieved you are notified that the vehicle is paid for, and when delivery to the port of Felixstowe has been arranged. 

When your vehicle is 1-2 weeks away from arriving in New Zealand, you'll recieve the keys, and an invoice from Specialist Vehicles NZ for the following costs:

• NZ GST (invoiced generated by NZ Customs)
• Shipping costs (fixed amount)
• Compliance cost
• 12 months registration, plus RUC if your vehicle is a diesel
• Final 50% of the Fee payable to Specialist Vehicles NZ (NB: Initial 50% will be charged at time of recieving your deposit).
• Delivery costs of shipping your new vehicle from Compliance to your door (if outside Auckland).

Specialist Vehicles will then take care of all the above, and give you an estimated delivery day... simple, easy and hassle-free!

If your vehicle is still within the manufacturers warranty period then we will advise at time of purchase. If not, and you wish to add a mechanical warranty, then we will be able to facilitate this through Autosure. 

Pricing is dependant on cover chosen, type of vehicle and length of warranty.

With finance there are several options.

As most NZ-based vehicle finance companies wont lend against a vehicle not based in NZ, then you can utilise Specialist Vehicles NZs' own transit finance facility to help get the car to NZ. 

Once here, we can then work with you to secure the necessary funding on the vehicle. 

Or, as many of our clients have done, is borrow the money unsecured, then either keep the structure this way if happy, or when then vehicle is here, change to a secured loan through your preferred financier.

We would discuss the option best-suited to you at the outset.