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FAA hits Amazon with another hazmat penalty

The Federal Aviation Administration has proposed a $78,000 civil penalty against Amazon.com for allegedly violating federal hazardous materials regulations.

   The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed a $78,000 civil penalty against Amazon.com for allegedly violating federal hazardous materials regulations.
   In this case, the FAA alleges that on Aug. 7, 2015, Amazon offered FedEx an undeclared hazmat shipment containing a flammable liquid to be moved by air transport from Ruskin, Fla. to Algonquin, Ill.
   The package held two 14-ounce bottles of ethanol-based Clubman Jeris Hair Tonic. Workers in FedEx’s Cary, Ill., sort facility discovered the leaking box.
   The FAA said the shipment was “not properly packaged, marked and labeled” as containing hazardous material. The agency also said Amazon failed to provide shipping papers indicating the amount, type and hazardous nature of the material in the package.
   Since early summer, the FAA has been piling on penalties against Amazon for repeat air cargo hazmat violations.

Chris Gillis

Located in the Washington, D.C. area, Chris Gillis primarily reports on regulatory and legislative topics that impact cross-border trade. He joined American Shipper in 1994, shortly after graduating from Mount St. Mary’s College in Emmitsburg, Md., with a degree in international business and economics.