Businesses warn of goods shortages of as chaos builds at UK ports ahead of Brexit deadline

Delays at ports getting worse after surge in demand for shipping as economy recovers and firms seek to build stockpiles

UK businesses have raised the alarm over shortages and rising prices thanks to a surge in containers flowing through UK ports as the economy begins to recover and companies try to build up supplies ahead of the Brexit deadline. 

Shipping costs have roughly quadrupled for some firms and delays at the UK's largest port, Felixstowe, are causing vessels to miss out the stop altogether, unloading their goods at Rotterdam or other European ports instead.  

The delays threaten to add to expected chaos as the Brexit transition period ends on 31 December with UK and EU negotiators still locked in talks over a deal.

Congestion has been building for several weeks and "is definitely getting worse", said John Newcomb, chief executive of the Builders' Merchants' Federation.

"It's spread from Felixstowe to other major ports."

Retailers raised the alarm last month that they were struggling to import goods partly because of congestion caused by a backlog of 11,000 containers of PPE ordered by the government.

Mr Newcomb and other building industry figures raised the issue of port delays with government ministers a month ago. 

“They were supportive but we haven't seen any improvement, it's gaining momentum," he said.

He added: "The closer we get to Brexit day, any additional pressure put on the ports and affects the smooth flow of building materials, that's a big concern for us - particularly if we don't have a deal."

Cheshire-based supplier Timco said 60 per cent of its shipped containers were being delayed by around two weeks after vessels chose not to stop at Felixstowe.

Timco director Simon Midwood said the firm has 160 containers waiting to be imported from Asian ports but there is currently no shipping space. Goods that have been shipped are between 3 and 17 per cent more expensive for customers due to a four-fold rise in shipping costs, Mr Midwood said.

Travis Perkins, one of the UK’s largest builders’ merchants, urged customers not to worry but to plan ahead in case of supply issues.

“The pressure on certain product lines is a combination of factors, such as manufacturing taking time to catch up post lockdown and pent up demand from customers, which is now picking up pace,” a spokesperson said. 

“Congestion at UK container ports may be a compounding factor, but we have a strong supply chain that enables us to have a sophisticated sourcing strategy in place.”

If no deal is reached, the building trade faces tariffs of up to 10 per cent and further price increases if the pound falls against other currencies.

The UK produces about four fifths of building materials locally but products such as power tools are mostly imported. Other industries such as vehicle manufacturing are expected to be more severely impacted by port delays and rising costs. 

The flow of trade out of the UK is expected to experience severe delays. The government’s reasonable worst-case scenario is for queues of 7,000 lorries in Kent. HMRC forecasts that, even with a deal, UK firms face an additional £7.5bn in administrative costs.