Simpli Home Violated AD/CVD Order in Quartz Countertop Determination, CBP Says
Simpli Home evaded antidumping and countervailing duty orders on quartz countertops from China, according to a Jan. 25 Enforce and Protect Act determination by CBP that found Simpli Home transshipped items through Vietnam and falsely declared them to be of Vietnamese origin. The investigation was requested by Cambria, based on trade data evidence showing Chinese artificial stone exports to Vietnam firm Anaq and product marketing showing quartz countertops.
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CBP based its determination of evasion largely on Simpli Home's and Anaq's failure to reply to requests for information. Due to the failure to cooperate by both the importer and the foreign supplier, CBP found that it lacked "vital information from the manufacturer to substantiate any claim that the subject countertops were not [quartz surface products (QSP)] covered under the Orders" or evidence that "refutes the [Cambria's] claim that Anaq imported QSP from China." Specific instances of noncompliance ranged from failure by Simpli Home to provide purchase orders and other domestic sales records when asked by CBP to its unwillingness to provide accurate value of the countertops, which "impeded the investigation and CBP’s ability to determine the appropriate amount of AD/CVD duties." Simpli Home also argued that the imported countertops were composed of calcium carbonate and contained no quartz or silica despite failing to provide CBP with supporting evidence.
During CBP's investigation, it found that Anaq had been importing merchandise from China described as “artificial stone ”that already had the sink holes cut into the stone, so that it can easily be combined with cabinets to make bathroom vanities." The stone shipments from China also matched measurements of stone fixtures on end product vanities sold in the U.S. by Simpli Home. Anaq was also founded after the implementation of the QSP orders and its owner and management team are Chinese nationals, CBP said.