Total For Both Fines Is $130,000

The FAA has proposed two civil penalties totalling $130,000 against Amazon for alleged violations of hazardous materials regulations.

In one case, the FAA alleges that on May 24, 2014, Amazon offered Federal Express (FedEx) two cardboard boxes containing corrosive rust stain preventer for air transportation from Plainfield, IL. to Davenport, FL.

One of the packages contained four 1-gallon plastic jugs of Rid O’ Rust Stain Preventer Acid Well Water Formula, while the other held two 1-gallon jugs of the formula. Workers at FedEx’s sorting facility in Lake Wales, FL discovered one of the containers leaked through the cardboard box.

The FAA alleges the package was not properly marked, labeled, packaged or accompanied by shipping papers indicating the amount, type and hazardous nature of the material inside. The FAA also alleges Amazon did not provide required emergency response information with the shipment. That penalty would total $78,000.

In the other case, the FAA alleges that on June 2, 2014, Amazon offered UPS a non-specification cardboard box containing a flammable gas for air transportation from Whitestown, IN to Glendale, CA. The package held a 19-ounce container of Simple Air EZ Green HVAC Cleaner.
 
Workers in UPS’s Louisville, KY sort facility discovered the container.

The FAA alleges the package was not properly marked, labeled or accompanied by shipping papers indicating the amount, type and hazardous nature of the material inside. The FAA also alleges Amazon did not provide required emergency response information with the shipment. The proposed fine for that violation is $52,000.

Amazon has 30 days from the receipt of the notices to respond to the FAA.

FMI: www.faa.gov