Is international trade costing your business more than it should?

Trading internationally means managing connected challenges across customs, contracts, regulation and your supply chain. An issue in one area can often reveal a problem, or an opportunity, elsewhere.

Womble Bond Dickinson (WBD)'s international team and Barbourne Brook bring together customs expertise and data analysis with legal and commercial advice. Together, we help you understand what the findings mean for your business, explore opportunities to recover value and tackle the underlying causes.

1. Could this help my business?

If your business imports or exports goods across borders, this approach could help you build a clearer picture of your customs costs, compliance risks and supply chain arrangements.

This could be particularly useful if you have a complex supplier network, recurring customs issues or questions about the duties you pay. It can also help you explore potential risks before buying or selling a business with an international supply chain.

2. What could our customs data reveal?

Customs data analysis can highlight potential issues with classification, valuation and origin information as well as possible overpayments, missed reliefs and operational inefficiencies.

Patterns in the data may also point to wider issues, such as inconsistent supplier information or gaps in your processes.

A finding doesn't necessarily mean something has gone wrong. It's a starting point for further investigation, helping us understand what's happened and whether action is needed.

3. How do WBD and Barbourne Brook work together?

Barbourne Brook's customs specialists use its own CAT360 platform to analyse every line of your customs data, identifying potential risks and opportunities across your supply chain.

WBD helps you investigate the legal and commercial issues behind those findings. This could include advising on contractual responsibilities, potential claims, regulatory requirements or transaction risks.

We'll agree the scope of the work and each organisation’s role with you at the outset, based on what your business needs.

4. Could we recover money?

The analysis may identify potential duty overpayments, missed reliefs or losses linked to supplier information or service provider arrangements.

Further investigation can help establish whether there's a basis to pursue a recovery from HMRC or another party. WBD can advise on relevant contractual rights and potential claims against suppliers, freight providers or others. Claims to HMRC are generally limited to the last three years, so the sooner you look, the more you may be able to recover

Identifying an opportunity doesn't guarantee a recovery; whether money can be recovered will depend on the circumstances, supporting evidence and relevant requirements.

5. What do our contracts have to do with customs?

Your contracts help define who provides information, checks its accuracy, keeps records and covers particular costs. If those responsibilities are unclear, customs issues can be harder to prevent or resolve.

We can review supplier, logistics, procurement and distribution agreements to see whether they reflect how your supply chain works in practice. This might include looking at customs responsibilities, origin information, audit rights, reporting obligations and contractual protections.

Where we find gaps, we can help you strengthen the terms and supporting arrangements.

6. Can this help simplify a complex supply chain?

Over time, businesses can accumulate overlapping framework agreements, purchase orders, supplier terms and logistics arrangements, making it difficult to understand who's responsible for what.

Customs analysis can help highlight recurring operational issues. WBD can then review the relevant contractual arrangements to identify gaps, inconsistencies or duplication and advise on a clearer approach.

The aim is not simply to add more documentation. It's to make your arrangements easier to understand and manage.

7. How could this help before buying or selling a business?

For buyers, reviewing customs activity and supply chain arrangements can help identify potential liabilities, costs and compliance issues as part of transaction due diligence.

For sellers, carrying out a review earlier gives you an opportunity to investigate and address potential issues before a buyer raises them.

Depending on the business and transaction, the review could cover duty spend, compliance history, commercial contracts, supplier governance and relevant trade requirements.

8. How can we reduce the risk of the same issues happening again?

Resolving an individual issue is only part of the picture. Understanding why it happened can help you identify what needs to change.

That could mean clearer contractual responsibilities, better information sharing, stronger checks or more consistent governance. Practical training can also help your people understand their roles and know when to seek advice.

The aim is to help your business manage trade risks more effectively, rather than repeatedly dealing with the same problems.

9. What information would we need to provide?

The information needed will depend on your priorities and the scope of the review. This may include customs declarations, duty records, supplier information and relevant commercial or logistics agreements.

An initial discussion will help us understand what you want to investigate, what information is available and how it can be shared before work begins.

10. Where do we start?

International Trade Week is a good moment to take stock. Speak to our international team or Barbourne Brook about your priorities and the questions you need to answer.