Cotswold car storage company awarded official HMRC Customs Warehouse
Windrush Car Storage has expanded its Cotswolds headquarters to meet client demand and achieved HMRC bonded status at both its sites in Gloucestershire and London
Established in 2004, Windrush operates two storage centres: a secure, secretive storage facility situated underneath the streets of Central London and an expansive headquarters hidden from view within beautiful Cotswolds countryside.
During lockdown, Windrush continued to develop and expand under the guidance of Founder, Managing Director, and ex-Formula 1 logistics expert Tim Earnshaw. Despite restrictions on movement, demand for car storage has remained high with the introduction of online auctions now making purchasing cars easier than ever, and the proposed ICE ban increasing the potential collectability of rare and interesting cars.
The Cotswolds Headquarters of Windrush has recently benefited from significant investment into its expansion. In addition to a locally and environmentally sensitive extension, a new fire detection system has also been installed.
The company has now had both its sites recognised as official HMRC Customs Warehouses, enabling Windrush to offer the only HMRC specialist vehicle Customs Warehouse within Central London.
This highly sought-after status offers the opportunity to delay payable duty and VAT on vehicle imports indefinitely. As long as the vehicle remains in the care of Windrush, it will be exempt from duty usually demanded when bringing a vehicle into the UK, a situation that has heightened since Brexit. Duty will only become payable when a vehicle leaves the Windrush Customs Warehouse to be driven and used within the UK on a permanent basis.
Duty and VAT will be waived entirely if a vehicle is subsequently re-exported after being cared for by Windrush. To be eligible for this exemption, vehicles must be taken directly to Windrush when imported into the UK.
To obtain official Customs Warehouse status requires months of HMRC scrutiny across all aspects of the business.
Tim said: “in the 17 years Windrush has been operational, we’ve never stopped in our quest to improve on what we do. Our first defining achievement was to be awarded ISO9001 status, today the official HMRC recognition of our bonded status marks another milestone. We take pride in being able to offer our clients whatever they desire as custodians of their much-loved and valuable vehicles, and whatever their question our answer is always yes.”
