Sourcing refrigerated trucks from China

UK duty on refrigerated delivery trucks

Heading 8704 covers motor vehicles for transporting goods. For a complete refrigerated delivery truck, choose the line by propulsion, gross vehicle weight, engine capacity where relevant, and whether it is new or used. The refrigeration unit does not make every truck the same commodity line. See the wider goods-vehicle guide. For tanker purchases, see our road tanker truck sourcing guide. For livestock transport, see our guide to sourcing livestock transport trucks. For glass transport, see our glass transport truck sourcing guide.

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 1 October 2026, all truck lines selected here carry 10% duty for goods from China, with no anti-dumping or countervailing measures and no suspensions. Import VAT is additional. The tariff attaches fluorinated greenhouse gas import controls; it also attaches waste import controls to the selected used diesel and electric lines. Ask your customs broker to confirm the applicable requirements for the actual vehicle and refrigerant.

Give your broker the finished vehicle specification, propulsion details, plated gross weight, engine capacity and new or used status. Confirm the commodity code before ordering. Keep the vehicle, refrigeration unit and any separately shipped spares clearly identified in the purchase documents.

Specify the cold body and the delivery route

State whether the load is chilled or frozen, its starting temperature, the outside conditions and the door-opening pattern. Agree usable body dimensions, insulation construction, door seals, washable lining, drainage, load restraint and refrigeration power while parked. Specify a loaded cooling and recovery test rather than accepting an empty-body temperature display.

Agree right-hand drive, UK lighting and payload after the insulated body, refrigeration unit and tail lift are fitted. Confirm the approval route and its timing relative to registration for the new goods vehicle with the relevant authority. Ask the manufacturer to confirm whether the refrigerated conversion affects approval or warranty, and identify who supplies refrigeration parts and carries out repairs.

Imported fluorinated-gas equipment must be labelled, including empty equipment. Obtain the refrigerant identity, charge details and label artwork before shipment. For international carriage of perishable food covered by the agreement, the vehicle needs the relevant international perishable-food transport approval. Identify the intended routes before accepting the supplier’s certification.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative fleet order of 20 electric refrigerated delivery trucks under 8704 60 00 00, invoiced at £400,000 free on board, with £30,000 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £430,000. Duty at 10% is £43,000. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £473,000, so it is £94,600. Import taxes total £137,600; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £43,000 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Cooling: repeat the agreed loaded test before shipment and on arrival, record temperatures across the load space, and check recovery after door openings and defrost.

Body: inspect panel joints, insulation damage, door seals, drainage and floor finish; check for water ingress, exposed insulation and loose load-restraint fittings.

Payload: weigh the completed truck and compare the resulting payload with the agreed specification; inspect body mounts, tail-lift operation and underbody corrosion protection.

Identity and service: match vehicle and refrigeration-unit identification to the documents, check refrigerant labels, and verify controller operation, alarms and the supplied maintenance instructions.

What goes wrong

An empty truck reaches its setpoint but loses temperature during loaded deliveries. Poor door seals, blocked airflow, weak insulation joints or refrigeration that stops while parked can undermine the agreed performance. Make the delivery cycle part of acceptance, and retain temperature records from both factory and arrival tests.

A chassis brochure can overstate the payload available after conversion. Approval documents may describe a different vehicle specification, while replacement controllers or compressors may be difficult to obtain. Confirm the finished configuration and parts plan before shipment, and record arrival defects before putting the truck into service.

Cambridge China Bridge sources these products for UK businesses, checking the factory and the documents before shipment. See factory verification. For machinery and equipment, see machinery imports.