(Auntie): As a general rule, I try to stay positive and look on the brighter side of things, especially when I encounter so many people, both in the public and private sector, who genuinely seem determined to help, some of whom I have praised with an Ask Auntie Award. However, there are occasions when no amount of pleading and reminding results in any forthcoming answers to readers’ questions.

It would be merely annoying to encounter the seemingly determined lack of response to what appear to be straightforward questions if readers weren’t waiting for an answer. I have said before that I will not give up on chasing down the information sought but sometimes even my patience is tested beyond my limits.

With that in mind, I have decided it was time to start calling out those departments and/or companies whose staff have clearly embraced the strategy of “If I don’t want to answer and ignore the question, it will go away.” A quick look through my sent emails will show that I don’t go away, even if I never even get a confirmation that my email was received, despite numerous requests for that basic courtesy.

Now I understand that people are busy, but the questions sent to me by readers are legitimate concerns and this is often the only way that they can get an answer. So when a question goes unanswered, sometimes for as much as a year or more (and that is not an exaggeration, I’m afraid), then it is time to say something publicly.

Therefore I am calling out the Cayman Islands Customs Department, giving them a grade of D for ‘disappointing’.

While I have received some answers from staff at customs since I began this column in 2016, the lack of responses dating back to last year has been glaringly obvious. To illustrate my point, I have summarised the questions that remain outstanding (despite numerous entreaties for information) followed by the date of the original request for help in brackets, in order of oldest to newest:

  • Why is it so hard to pay at customs after you clear the paperwork? (24 November 2016)
  • My partner and I have booked a romantic vacation to the Cayman Islands this summer but I have been told that it is illegal to bring sex toys with us. Is this true? (13 February 2017)
  • I have heard that local car importers who source and ship secondhand vehicles from Japan and elsewhere are claiming that individual importers are undermining their business by going to online trade sites, and they have persuaded Government to restrict such imports so that only the ‘legitimate’ importers can bring cars into Cayman. Is this rumour true? (17 February 2017)
  • Why does airport customs use an exchange rate of USD/KYD of 0.84 when calculating the duty to pay on goods imported in US dollars when the established rate is 0.82? (15 August 2017)
  • I have noted on my last two arrivals in Cayman (I am a resident) that customs has switched to all-black uniforms which to my mind are very SWAT team-like and not very welcoming. What is the reason for the change? (9 October 2017)
  • Why does it take more than three days to clear a container’s paperwork, when several years ago it could be done in a few hours? I run a business that is a registered importer and use local agents who upload the details directly to customs. These delays cost my business money as I must pay fees to the shipping company for keeping the container so long. I hope this question helps get this issue addressed and customs can get the support and leadership it clearly needs. (9 March 2018)

Considering the waiting time for most of the above questions, the 24 days that have passed without any response at all for the most recent query doesn’t seem that bad, but it was the proverbial straw that broke my camel’s back.

In light of Deputy Governor Franz Manderson, who is the head of the civil service, engaging in a very noteworthy and public push for an improved government work force, which includes a focus on customer service, the “earning” of a D grade by customs seems particularly egregious. I can only hope that things get better.

CNS Local Life