The term hazardous goods refers to substances and items whose transportation can, due to their nature, their properties or their state in combination with the transportation process - present dangers for people, animals, or the environment, as well for public safety or order.
A number of common goods and items such as, for example, batteries, aerosols, cleaning agents or perfumes can endanger such safety.
Please note that if you re-use packaging with hazardous goods labels, this will mean that the consignment is considered a hazardous item, irrespective of its contents.
Hazardous goods rules for national shipping
According to the General Terms and Conditions for DHL small packages (AGB Brief National) and DHL parcels (AGB DHL Paket/Express National), consignments whose transportation is subject to hazardous goods regulations may not be shipped nationally unless they are permitted under the "Rules governing the transport of hazardous substances and objects".
Hazardous goods may therefore be shipped nationally in accordance with DHL Paket's rules governing the transport of hazardous substances and objects and in compliance with the underlying provisions governing the carriage of dangerous goods by road (ADR). Relevant details can be found in the following documents for national shipping.
Provisions governing the international carriage of dangerous goods by road
According to the General Terms and Conditions for DHL small packages (AGB Brief International) and DHL parcels (AGB DHL Paket International), the international shipment of hazardous goods is generally precluded.
However, if they comply with certain prerequisites, business customers may conclude a supplementary agreement on the shipment of hazardous goods to certain European countries. Additional exemptions are not permitted for international shipping, i.e. private customers may not send any hazardous goods internationally.
Examples of which goods are classed as hazardous and which cannot therefore be sent internationally can be found in the following document on international shipping.
