Written Reports

Any person in physical possession of a hazardous material at the time of an incident that occurs during transportation, including loading, unloading, and temporary storage, must submit a Hazardous Materials Incident Report. The report must be submitted on DOT Form F 5800.1 within 30 days of the incident. A written report must be submitted for any of the following circumstances:

• A telephone notification to the NRC or CDC is made for a HAZMAT incident
• HAZMAT is unintentionally released or any quantity of hazardous waste is discharged
• A specification cargo tank with a capacity of 1,000 gallons or greater containing any HAZMAT suffers structural damage to the lading retention system or damage that requires repair to a system intended to protect the lading retention system, even if there is not release of HAZMAT
• An undeclared HAZMAT is discovered

If the HAZMAT incident involves air transportation, a written or electronic copy of the Hazardous Materials Incident Report must be sent to the nearest Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Security Field Office.

A copy of the Hazardous Materials Incident Report must be kept for two years after the submission date. In addition, the report must be updated as soon as possible, within one year whenever any of the following occurs:

• A death results from injury caused by a hazardous material
• There was a misidentification of the hazardous material or package information on a prior report
• Information regarding damage, loss, or a related cost that was not known at the time of the incident report is now available
• Damage, loss, or a related cost changes by $25,000 or more, or ten percent of the prior total estimate, whichever is greater

To learn more about DOT HAZMAT Awareness visit our DOT HAZMAT General Awareness Online Training web page.