Last Revised: May 29, 2020
Recently, several outbound shipments from various University departments were flagged for hazmat violations and returned. Many of these violations resulted from Penn approved shippers in eShipGlobal re-using old boxes with inappropriate hazard labels on them from their previous contents. Some of these hazard labels and markings are listed here and shown below:
- Limited Quantity label
- Class 9 label
- UN1845 (or any UN-number combination)
- Excepted Quantity label
- Exempt Human (or Animal) Specimen wording
- Biohazard label
- Biological Substance, Category B wording
Misusing hazard labels on packaging can incur violations, fines and will delay the delivery of your package. If you ship out any material (including non-regulated lab material or office supplies) in reused boxes, make certain that ALL of the previous hazard markings/warning labels have been COMPLETEY removed or covered up. Blackout labels, available for purchase from various vendors, may assist with completely covering up any unneeded hazard labels. Many hazard warning labels, like the one below, are fairly innocuos in apprearance and may not be recognized by shippers as hazard labels. Nevertheless, these labels must also be obliterated before the package is shipped.
Questions- please contact: Jim Crumley: jcrumley@ehrs.upenn.edu or Marie-Luise Faber: mlfaber@ehrs.upenn.edu
EHRS Office phone number: 215-898-4453