Non-compliant plastic fuel containers

Background

WorkSafe has observed the leaking of several plastic jerry cans and removable marine fuel tanks. The fuel containers may have leaked because they were older than the 5 year lifespan set by the ADG Code. This means they were not compliant.

Recommended ways to control risks

Shelf life

Plastic jerry cans and removable marine fuel tanks cannot be sold if they are older than 5 years from the date of manufacture.

Expired containers should not be used. They should be returned to the supplier for reprocessing.

The date of manufacture is embossed on compliant containers.

Figure 1: Example of date of manufacture of a plastic fuel container. The inner circle is month and outer circle is year. This container was manufactured in November 2023.

United Nations marking requirements

The ADG Code requires all dangerous goods packages to pass United Nations (UN) performance tests. This includes fuel containers. The tests include drop, leak, pressure and stack tests.

If containers pass the performance tests, their package design is approved and given a UN number. The fuel container must then be appropriately marked with this UN number.

Businesses should check their stock. Businesses that find fuel containers without this marking should contact the supplier to determine compliance.

Figure 2: Example of the UN-approval marking.