BIFAlink
News Desk
www.bifa.org
Beware of company identity theft
Transaid makes big steps in reducing road deaths BIFA continues to support the work of industry charity Transaid and is delighted to share information from the organisation’s Q2 2022 report. An estimated 1.35 million people die each year as a result of road traffic crashes. Even though low- and middle-income countries account only for approximately 60% of the world’s vehicles, they experience 93% of the global fatalities on roads. Transaid’s portfolio of road safety programmes continues to grow, with Mozambique and Ghana benefitting from new driver and rider training programmes, building on the success of existing programmes in Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia where a steady return to pre-pandemic training levels has been seen. Transaid also continues its Emergency Transport Scheme (ETS) to provide bicycle ambulances to rural areas, halving the travelling time from village to healthcare facility for seriously ill
We are reproducing a communication sent recently by the European Freight Trades Association (EFTA) to its members. EFTA is the leading credit forum for UK and Irish-based logistics companies and many BIFA Members are EFTA members. Company identity theft occurs when fraudsters in effect hijack a company by creating a similar email address (such as having one character different) to that of an innocent company and then use that email address to place orders for goods and services which are never paid for. If you do not spot what is going on (and to detect it you have to compare the bogus email address against the real one) there is a distinct likelihood that you could end up extending credit to fraudsters when you think you are
dealing with a genuine company. The amounts might not be insignificant as the fraudsters (and this is organised crime) are not doing this for pennies. As part of the rigorous credit checking procedure, EFTA recommends the email address being used is compared with the one that will, hopefully, be on the website of the company supposedly applying for credit. There can be a twist as a recent case seen by EFTA concerned a company without a website (not every company has or needs a website), so there was no opportunity to compare a genuine
website email address. Fraudsters constantly become more sophisticated and have spotted that by using innocent companies that do not have websites there is less chance of them being rumbled. Without a website it is one less check that you, the innocent supplier, can make. Fraud is an ever-growing risk and EFTA urges extra vigilance, especially if you receive an application for credit from a company that seems very healthy but does not have a website. For more information about EFTA, visit www.eftaweb.com
Russian sanctions: What you need to know
patients. In the year ending November 2021, 277 ETS
Members are reminded that the UK government has imposed a range of measures, including trade and financial sanctions, under the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (the Russia Sanctions Regulations). Further information can be found at www.gov.uk/guidance/trading- under-sanctions-with-russia?utm_me dium=email&utm_campaign=govuk- notifications-topic&utm_source=2bf2 bdb6-39f1-48d0-9928- 11d599136dee&utm_content=daily The purposes of the Russia Sanctions Regulations are to encourage Russia to cease actions: • Destabilising Ukraine, or • Undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty or independence of Ukraine. Find detailed guidance on all sanctions at www.gov.uk/government/collection
s/uk-sanctions-on-russia UK businesses are responsible for the decision on whether to trade with Russia. Business should expect a highly unpredictable trading environment as a result of: • Designations of individuals and entities under the Russia Sanctions Regulations by the UK, • Retaliatory measures by Russia. The Russia Sanctions Regulations affect several aspects of trade with Russia, including: • The movement of goods to and from Russia, • The settling of financial transactions with suppliers and customers, • Trading with certain businesses and individuals. BIFA has noted a significant increase in enquiries regarding sanctions and embargoes, particularly for shipments transiting
the EU, where carriers are seeking clarification as to what checks are being carried out by shippers and freight forwarders. One such incident highlighted the issue: a shipment destined to a Russian national based in the Democratic Republic of the Congo transhipped via Brussels, where it was stopped. Investigation established that the Russian individual was actually subject to sanctions and the consignment was seized by Belgium Customs. Dealing with sanctions and embargoes is complex, particularly where individuals adopt aliases and information provided by government is often not in the easiest to read formats. There is commercially available software which can be used to check for sanctions and embargoes. We also suggest Members should seek legal advice if they plan to continue trading with Russia.
volunteer riders were trained and 5,064 individuals were provided with transport — 50% of these being severe malaria cases. For more information see Transaid.org TT Club highlights warehousing risks Insurer and loss prevention advisor the TT Club has issued a new series of TT Brief documents on the risks involved in running a warehouse. See www.ttclub.com/loss- prevention/warehouse-risks to view and download the individual guides entitled: Operating a secure warehouse; Choosing a storage warehouse; Operating a safe warehouse; Mitigating flood risk; and Preventing warehouse fires.
6
September 2022
Made with FlippingBook Annual report maker