Skolnik

Companies engaged in the business of transportation, chemical manufacturing or packaging lead the first-quarter fines of 2009 by DOT. A total of $470,000 in fines was issued during these three months with individual fines ranging from $500 to $385,400! A single incident that resulted in multiple deaths comprised the unusually large $385,400. The company was cited for not properly training their employees with regards to the dangers of the hazardous materials that they were transporting. In most cases, the fines were for far less serious violations and averaged $3,200 per company. However, in a large number of the cases, fines were for improper or insufficient training of hazmat employees. Being the most common violation seen by DOT, it is critical that all companies determine if employees qualify as HazMat Employees under the definition of 49 CFR 172.700 and then insure that these employees are appropriately trained.