The United Kingdom Warehousing Association (UKWA) is warning that any company found guilty of storing goods on which duty is outstanding could face 'financial ruin' - even if the company was unaware duty had not been paid.

According to the UKWA, there is evidence that Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs (HRMC) has started a campaign targeting warehouse keepers and hauliers that may unknowingly be handling excise goods on which the duty has not yet been paid.

"While HMRC has had the authority to assess anyone for duty on goods illegally diverted from bonded movements who was 'aware or should reasonably have been aware' of the diversion at any point in the supply chain since 2010, action has been spasmodic," says Alan Powell of Alan Powell Associates, UKWA's honorary adviser on customs and excise matters.

"However, HMRC is deploying more officers to investigate excise goods supply chains. As a result, we are now increasingly seeing third-party service-providers, including hauliers, warehouse keepers and lessors of property, such as barns and outbuildings, being penalised by HMRC as a result of their involvement with businesses that have evaded duty on alcohol and have absconded."

Anyone found to have held or dealt in duty-unpaid excise goods can be fined up to 100% of the duty evaded.

Powell says: "HMRC had been slow to apply ... 'excise wrong-doing penalties', but are now vigorously applying them. As a result, many small and medium companies are facing unexpected bills and penalties from HMRC of hundreds of thousands of pounds."

In one instance, a storage company is facing a duty bill alone for nearly GBP100,000 (USD148,751) after HMRC inspectors found duty-unpaid alcohol stored at the company's site.

UKWA CEO Roger Williams says the storage company was simply "unaware" of the risks involved in handling loads of duty unpaid alcohol and the director of the company to whom they leased the space has disappeared.

The message from Alan Powell and UKWA is that if you offer third-party logistical services of any kind, you must check what is being handled or stored: do not take storage requirements on face value.

For further advice, please contact UKWA on +44 207 836 5522 or visit www.ukwa.org.uk.