Your duties when transporting dangerous goods by road or rail

You must comply with a number of legal requirements when transporting dangerous goods by road or rail, such as legal obligations under the Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Use of Transportable Pressure Equipment Regulations 2009. This legislation is designed to correspond with the current European legislation - the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR) - so your obligations are broadly similar whether you are transporting dangerous goods in the UK or throughout the European Union.

Some of your key duties are outlined below:

• Packaging must be . It must stand up to the normal pressures of transport and repeated handling during loading and unloading. There will be specific packaging requirements depending on the classification of the goods.
• The vehicle, container, tank or wagon you use must meet special requirements according to the classification of the goods.
• All packaging must be labelled so that people handling the goods - including the emergency services in the case of an incident - can take appropriate precautions.
• People carrying wastes - including hazardous wastes - need to register with the Environment Agency. See the page in this guide on rules on other specific types of non-hazardous goods.
• Proper procedures must be followed when goods are being loaded and unloaded.
• Road vehicles must carry specified types of safety equipment, such as fire extinguishers.
• You may need to appoint a qualified dangerous goods safety adviser.
• All drivers must have suitable training, not just to drive their vehicle, but also on what to do if an accident occurs. Drivers of all vehicles need to hold an ADR training certificate.
• If there is an incident or emergency, the driver must notify the emergency services and, in certain circumstances, the Health & Safety Executive (HSE), the Environment Agency and the Department for Transport (DfT).

Find out about transporting dangerous goods on the DfT website - Opens in a new window.

There are, however, some exceptions to the rules - for example, if you're only carrying small quantities of certain types of dangerous goods by road.

Read a guide to working with ADR and the carriage of dangerous goods by road on the HSE website - Opens in a new window.

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