Tariff exclusion for shunter fittings denied where the parts were not treated as specialised material handling equipment.

Shock Dampened Front Buffer Push Plates and the Rear Dehitching Device fitted to a shunter were held to be essential parts of the shunter, not weight lifting or similar material handling equipment within the explanation to Tariff Item 34. The exclusion was confined to motor vehicles fitted with specialised equipment of the kind described in the tariff explanation, and these goods did not answer that description. The analogy to a platform elevator was rejected because that item was treated as weight lifting equipment, whereas the disputed fittings stood on a different footing. The claim for exclusion therefore failed and the revision application was rejected.

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Issues: Whether the Shock Dampened Front Buffer Push Plates and the Rear Dehitching Device fitted to a shunter were entitled to exclusion from duty as weight lifting or material handling equipment under the explanation to Tariff Item 34.

Analysis: The disputed items were found to be essential parts of a shunter and not equipment of the kind contemplated by the explanation to Tariff Item 34. The explanation covered motor vehicles fitted with weight lifting, earth-moving, or similar specialised material handling equipment, and the goods in question did not fall within that category. The comparison with a platform elevator was rejected because that item was treated as weight lifting equipment, whereas the present goods stood on a different footing.

Conclusion: The claim for exclusion failed and the revision application was rejected.

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