Australian airline Qantas has become the latest carrier to remind customers of the strict restrictions regarding the declaration, marking, and labelling of lithium-ion, lithium metal, and sodium-ion batteries being presented for carriage.
In an advisory, Qantas reminded customers that all battery shipments must be correctly declared, marked, and labelled before being presented to Qantas Freight. The requirements apply to batteries packed on their own, packed with equipment, or contained in equipment, including mobile phones, laptops, tablets, tracking devices, and other battery-powered items.
The airline’s demand includes:
- The Air Waybill must clearly describe the battery type, UN number, and packing instruction.
- Application of the correct battery mark, dangerous goods label, or other required mark.
- Any old, incorrect, or conflicting labels must be removed or fully obliterated.
- Package markings and labels must match the shipment declaration.
- Shipments under Section II of the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations must meet all marking, documentation, and handling requirements.
Qantas warns that shipments with incorrect, missing, or conflicting declarations, marks or labels, may be delayed, rejected, or placed on hold.
IAM Member Impact: As compliance around ocean freight and airfreight shipping of lithium-ion, lithium metal, and sodium-ion batteries increases, members should be fully aware of the requirements specified by their chosen sea-freight or airfreight carrier and advise their customers of the risk of delays or significant fines.
Source: Qantas Advisory