Just what Do You Get For The Hazmat Fee?

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Speedo66

Speedo66

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Do they put extra padding around the package?

Do the shipments go in special trucks?

Do only specially trained personel handle it? Do they get hazardous duty pay?

What do they do to justify a $22.50 fee over and above the regular shipping charge?

I ordered some powder which hasn't arrived yet, just curious.
 
USPS, FedEx, UPS, etc... have no clue. They just know to charge more and mark the load hazmat. Some how by marking the bill of lading makes the gun powder unable to ignite.
 
They use their HazMat certification to fill out paperwork.

That's about it. There is no government requirement to charge a fee. The government requires no hazmat fee.
 
I would guess that the carrier gets the $$ to help offset the insurance premiums they have to pay to accept the liability of the hazardous cargo?

I dunno, just my guess as I try to digest the 2 tons of Easter ham in my tummy -lol
 
They don't ship in special trucks. The packaging is stronger and done by certified packers. There is also some paper work to be filed for the shipment.

As a practical matter though, you pay $22.50 plus shipping to purchase from non-local sources for powder and primers. Only you can decide if it is worth the extra fees.

About 23 years ago and earlier, powder and primers could only be shipped to FFL holders. I think that changed in '86 but I'm not positive. I think the same change also allowed ammo shipments to non-FFL holders. I'm not sure what the powder/primer shipping situation was before GCA'68 passed.
 
Truth be told on why the haz mat surcharge. Not every carrier is allowed to carry haz mat. You must be haz mat certified. Usually, carriers will charge you a haz mat fee for every UN number. This number is dictated by the class of haz mat. for Example, Explosives is Class 1 haz mat. Class 2 is compressed gas, class 3 is flammable liquid, class 4 is flammable solid.... so on and so forth. you have radiactive, oxidizers, poisonous, corrosive, even magnetic can be hazardous in air craft.

This freight must be packaged and labeled correctly and the correct documents must accompany the Truck bill of lading, Ocean bill of lading or if your shipping via air, Air way bill. The truck trailer or container must also be dressed with the correct haz mat placards. There must be a hazardous material declaration which includes, the Class, Un number, Flash point, and 24 hour contact as well as the shipper and consignee info, pc count weight and dims. Since not every carrier or freight agent is DGR Certified (Dangerous Goods/Restricted articles), they can and will charge a Haz mat fee/surcharge. $20.00 is not that bad. Aircraft cargo is it usually around $75.00 - $95.00 per UN number. Heaven forbid you ever want to ship this stuff out of the country because then you will need to have the U.S. State Dept issue you a DSP-73 license / permit. You will need to be licensed yourself and be able to make compliance or believe me, U.S. Customs can and will be a pain when it comes to this. Probably even cease your freight.

LGB
 
Is the Hazmat fee per pound or a flat fee?
Click to expand...
It's a flat fee for even the smallest order. They charge you $22.50 for 1,000 primers or 40,000 primers.

Here's my guess, Since the Government can't charge you Federal Excise Tax on components like they do with loaded ammo they hit us with a Hazmat fee to make up for it. Here's my proof... There is no Hazmat fee charged when you order loaded ammo online even though loaded ammo is more hazardous than components. Possible, no???
 
Haz Mat drivers are certified for HazMat, I had to have it when I drove oxygen. Vehicles are supposed to meet tighter standards of safety, but that can "vary"...
 
Haz Mat drivers are certified for HazMat
Click to expand...

I understand the hazmat cert. for hauling O2 and gas, etc. But when powder is in the back of the UPS truck, is the driver required to have a hazmat endorsement on his CDL?

I'm thinking no because of the small quantities involved but we never got into DOT regs on our level.
 
mgkdrgn is correct.



And the carrier decides how much to charge. Flat fee, per unit weight, per UN number, or whatever.
The carrier is the one who sets the rate.

There is NO government requirement to charge a fee. It's a way for the carrier to make extra money.


.
 
As one who had to be re-certified every three years in an 8 hour class, and deal with knowing two big books full of conflicting rules & regs. (DOT & EPA)

And be tested on it to maintain my job.

And having to remember all that crap in order to fill out all the paperwork correctly on every shipment, without running afoul of either DOT or EPA regs that often didn't agree with each other.

And having to have all the labels & forms, and make sure the truck driver did too.

Whatever they charge just barely covers the time, training & paperwork costs involved.

In fact, it's a bargain.

rc
 
Hey, if you can buy Polonium-210 without a hazmat fee - there's no reason to charge us for primers and powder!!!
Click to expand...

Gosh I hope Obama doesn't try to put a ban on Plutonium, because the home bomb builders will just go nuts and buy up all the home-loading materials. Prices will skyrocket. Pretty soon all the bomb builder's supply store shelves will be empty. If that happens, I'll never be able to finish my home defense tactical nuke.

:neener:
 
At the gun club a couple weeks ago, I overheard one old geezer telling another old geezer that George HW Bush had a brother in law who was CEO of FedEx and he made a law that they can charge the haz-mat fee to screw all the gun owners.:rolleyes:
 
Did he tell them about the black helicopters, too? Don't get too close to the guy, because he's full of it.

I was an FFL dealer when the HazMat fees were first introduced. If I remember correctly, it started at about $5.00. As noted, it's a fee charged by the two carriers, UPS and FedEx, (Man, I miss Railway Express!) even though there has never been a documented case of gunpowder or primers causing a HazMat condition with either carrier.

The fee pays for the training and paperwork that goes with carrying hazardous materials. I've been the incident commander on numerous HazMat incidents, but they all involved chemicals, and some of those were really nasty stuff.

And once again, the government doesn't get anything from the HazMat fees, and there is no federal law requiring the fee. There is federal law concerning transport of all hazardous materials, and powder and primers just happen to fall within those transportation laws.

Hope this helps.

Fred
 
Its mostly to cover the cost of government regulations regarding transport of hazardous materials. Its a major PITA to abide by the regulations and they have gotten progressively worse. I am guessing the $20 charged probably is not far from the extra cost the carrier actually incurs.
 
AFAIK it's only a UPS and Fed-X charge. If you buy a pallet of primers and powder and have it shipped LTL to a business you won't have to pay any hazmat.
Rusty
 
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