New Art Shipping Rules Into and Out of the US

The Antique Trade Gazette is reporting that starting in August there will be new US Customs rules regarding inspection of art being shipped into and out of the US by Commercial Passenger Airlines. The article states that as much as 20% of US/International art shipping is handled by Commercial Passenger Airlines.  The new rules are part of the continuing installation of post 9/11 anti terrorist guidelines.

In addition to the time issue, the impact may be larger than expected as insurance companies are concerned about the added inspections and handling. Typically the more a piece of art is handled, the higher the risk for damage. Both appraisers and dealers who deal with an international clientele should read this article, and probably do further investigations into the new rules.

The ATG reports

The authorities believe that museums, which tend to have relatively long lead times for planning exhibitions, will cope better with the delays that the new rules are expected to create. And some of them have already signed up to a federal programme that allows them to create their own secure screening facilities in-house, thereby reducing the risk of further intrusive checks at airports.

However, art and antiques dealers needing to ship items quickly between galleries, clients and fairs, face a much more difficult time.

Under the rules, all items must be screened individually “at a level of security commensurate to that of passenger baggage”, which means that shrink-wrapped pallets covering whole consignments are likely to become a thing of the past.

The TSA has also warned that potential contamination of shipments while in transit to the airport means that “there is a high risk of a physical inspection – opening boxes and removing content”.

Apart from the delays resulting from either screening or the unpacking and checking of every individual item in a shipment, there is the question of security and insurance. And there is no guarantee that the person carrying out the inspection will be trained to handle artworks sensitively.

Alexander Rich, associate director of Blackwall Green, the jewellery and fine art division of insurers Heath Lambert, told ATG that the measure potentially had “huge implications” for dealers shipping items to US clients.

“The industry needs to catch up over here on the likely impact of this legislation, but from an insurance point of view we will probably wait and see what its effects are until after August,” he said.

“If little or no damage is caused to items in transit, underwriters will probably not react, but if it leads to a raft of claims, they will.

To read the full ATG article, click HERE.