Is this placard illegal?

It is the shipper's responsibility to supply the proper placards, per FMCSA, not the carrier's or driver's responsibility. However, it is the carrier's and driver's responsiblity to ensure the proper placards are applied to the vehicle.

 

Why would you need to display the UN numbers when the shipment is not in bulk packaging?
Bulk pakaging would be over 450 liters.

 

It is a staright load of only one commodity, with only one UN number. It is in the regs, that way. If the load consisted of more than one UN number, the numbers do not need to be displayed.

 

Can you point me in the right direction as to where in the regs. to look?
I can't seem to find it.

 

You can find everything here. I think it's 172.442

http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/tex...node=49:2.1.1.3.8&idno=49#49:2.1.1.3.8.6.25.1

 

Start at 172.332 and then go to the regs specified, in that reg.

BTW, good link.

 

Not only does it appear to be illegal, but the poorly-drawn numbers are in a font such that they clash with the background characters, creating an annoying conflict of styles.

Simply dreadful.

 

The fact that you find yourself in this situation, is a big red flag waving in your face, that you are not working for a credible company. Carriers who do HazMat work, either have their own HazMat department, or have an outside company that handles compliance issues. The fact that some other driver accepted that load placarded that way, is a sign you are not working with a very bright bunch of drivers.

If you do so much as simply hook to the trailer, you become part of the problem. Better to get someone to tell you where to get the right placards **BEFORE** you hook to the trailer. If they don't want to get you squared away, refuse to pull the load.

In this day and age, HazMat loads are taken very seriously, and the fines start out in the thousands. If you do something because you were told to, you could end up fined for the mistake, right along with your company and the shipper. Better to sit, than to get involved with this violation.

 

Thank You Autocar and CondoCruiser.
Looks like the reg. is 172.301.
I've been doing this since '85 and still learn something new all of the time.
Can someone tell me why I want to do HAZMAT? I think I have to question my sanity!!!