Transporting Hazardous Materials, Are You Qualified?

In day-to-day life, a person may have the opportunity to be transporting hazardous materials in their personal vehicle. This is okay only if it is household chemicals and not for commerce. There are special rules and regulations that need to be followed in order to ship in commerce.

1. Commercial Drivers License and Endorsements

Safe transportation requires employees to earn a Commercial Drivers license (CDL) and special endorsements to be able to transport hazardous materials. There are three different CDL class licenses based on the weight of the vehicle:Hazmat spill transporting hazardous materials

  • Class A (tractor-trailer)
  • Class B (oil truck)
  • Class C (box truck)

There are also three different endorsements an employee can attain:

  • N- Tank Vehicle Endorsement (Tanker)
  • H- Hazardous Materials Endorsement (HAZMAT)
  • X- Tanker/HAZMAT Combo Endorsement.

2. Insurance

Having the ability to be transporting hazardous materials in commerce comes with a possibility of increased risk of accidents and incidents on the roadway which can make for a higher insurance liability between $1 million- $5 million depending on the cargo.

3. Training

transporting hazardous materials

Once an employee has been properly trained in transporting hazardous materials, a re-certification in three years in required to continue shipping and transporting. Then there is also driving certifications and training to familiarize employees with hazards on the road and the hazards the vehicle may pose.

To learn more about our dangerous goods shipping services, please request a shipping quote from MLI Environmental today!