Placarding

When an accident causes hazardous materials in transportation to be released, the vehicle operator, emergency response teams, and the surrounding community all face imminent danger. Emergency response teams must accurately identify the hazardous materials as quickly as possible. To aid emergency response teams, the DOT developed a system of placarding for the rapid identification of hazardous materials. Emergency responders are trained to look for these warning placards. Improperly placarded or unplacarded hazmat shipments place the lives of these individuals and others at risk.

When determining placarding requirements, remember the following: If a hazardous material is contained within a transport vehicle, bulk packaging, freight container, unit load device, or rail car, then a placard representing the hazard class for the hazardous material must be displayed on both sides and each end, regardless of quantity.

Placarding is a joint responsibility between the shipper and the carrier to make sure that the correct placard has been offered or affixed.

To learn more about Multimodal Shipping visit our Multimodal DOT, IATA & IMDG HAZMAT Shipping Online Training web page.