All vehicles shipped into Australia must undergo thorough cleaning before departing and will be subject to inspection upon arrival to ensure that they do not carry any ‘biosecurity risks’ with them.

It is the responsibility of the importer to ensure that the vehicle is clean and free of any of these risks prior to shipping. Examples of potential biosecurity risks include: live insets, soil, mud, animal material or plant material such as leaves and bark.

On arrival, all vehicles are inspected by the Australian Department of Agriculture and if any biosecurity risks are detected the vehicle may be subject to further cleaning and reinspection at your own expense. If the vehicle is found to be heavily contaminated then it may be declined entry altogether and you will have to pay the cost to have it sent back to the UK.

To avoid this, please take the time to thoroughly clean both the interior and exterior of the vehicle and ensure there are no contaminants, or employ the services of a third party cleaning company.

Some important exterior areas to check when cleaning your car, as outlined on the Australian Department of Agriculture website:

• Wheels, wheel guards, mud guards
• Engine bay—remove water from any reservoirs (excluding radiator) and ensure your radiator is clean and free of debris in the cooling fins
• Underside
• Behind the fairings and side-covers
• Above and around the fuel tank
• Inside chassis rails
• External vents
• Around window seals
• Sticky protective wheel and bonnet covers on new vehicles

Important internal areas to check:

• Boot area including spare tyre and wheel well
• Internal compartments of motorcycles, such as under seat storage
• Engine bay—remove water from the windshield reservoir and ensure the grille and radiator cooling fins are clean and free of debris
• Internal storage compartments including console
• Under seats and mats
• In seat folds
• Internal vents
• Internal window, door seals and around door locks

For further help or advice regarding Australia Quarantine inspection or any other aspect of shipping a car to Australia, don't desitate to get in touch today. If you'd like to ship your car, get a free quote here or call us free on 0800 3890784.