What is a safety data sheet? Section 14 explained

If you sell perfume, candles, diffusers, aerosols, cosmetics or anything with fragrance oil in it, there's one document that answers most shipping questions: the Safety Data Sheet, or SDS. It's also the first thing a courier, or FlipShip, will ask you for.

What is a safety data sheet?

An SDS is a standard document that describes a chemical product: what's in it, what the hazards are, how to store and handle it, and how to transport it. In the UK, the format is set by UK REACH. Every SDS has the same 16 sections in the same order, so once you know where to look, you can read any of them in a minute.

You might also see it called an MSDS (material safety data sheet). That's the older name for the same thing.

Where to get one

The supplier or manufacturer of a hazardous product has to provide an SDS. If you make your own products, ask the suppliers of your fragrance oils, essential oils and other ingredients. If you buy in finished products, ask the brand or wholesaler. Reputable suppliers send them free, often as a download.

You won't always get one for a finished candle, because the rules treat a candle as an article rather than a chemical. That's fine: candles aren't usually dangerous goods for transport. See our candles guide →

Section 14: the one that matters for shipping

Section 14 is transport information. It tells you whether the product is dangerous goods when it's shipped, and how it's classified. It's split into numbered parts:

14.1 UN numberA four-digit number, such as UN1266. If there's a UN number, the product is dangerous goods for transport.
14.2 Shipping nameThe official name that goes with the UN number, such as "Perfumery products".
14.3 Hazard classThe type of danger. Class 3 is flammable liquids, Class 2 is gases such as aerosols, Class 4.1 includes matches.
14.4 Packing groupHow dangerous it is within its class: I is high, II is medium, III is low.
14.5 EnvironmentWhether the product is harmful to the environment, which can need its own marking.
14.6 PrecautionsAnything special the person shipping it needs to know.

If section 14 says "not regulated" or "not classified as dangerous goods", the product isn't dangerous goods for transport, and it can usually travel as an ordinary parcel.

UN numbers you're likely to see

UN1266Perfumery products: perfume, aftershave, many reed diffusers and room sprays.
UN1169Extracts, aromatic, liquid: many essential oils and fragrance oils.
UN1993Flammable liquid, not otherwise specified: a catch-all for flammable mixtures.
UN1950Aerosols: deodorants, dry shampoo, hairspray and other spray cans.
UN1944Safety matches.
UN3082Environmentally hazardous liquid: some oils that are harmful to aquatic life.

The hazard symbols trap

Many scented products carry red diamond hazard symbols on their labels. Those come from section 2 of the SDS, which covers how the product is classified for sale and use. They don't tell you how it's classified for transport. A scented candle can carry hazard symbols and still not be dangerous goods to ship, and a product without them can still be flammable in transit. For shipping, always go by section 14.

Gift sets and bundles

There's no single SDS for a gift set. Each item in it has its own sheet, and the parcel has to meet the rules for everything inside. A candle, a diffuser and a box of matches means three sheets and three sets of rules. Keep an up-to-date SDS for every product you sell, and check the revision date. Suppliers update them when formulas or rules change.

What about couriers?

Switching to a courier doesn't get you round the rules. Most couriers, and the parcel comparison sites and drop-off shops that resell them, won't accept products with a UN number in section 14 on a standard account. The couriers that do carry dangerous goods only accept them when all of this is in place:

Approved accountA business account the courier has approved for dangerous goods in advance. A standard account, or a label bought online, isn't enough.
Trained staffEveryone who packs, marks or books the parcels must be trained in dangerous goods for their role, under the road transport rules, with training records kept.
Packed and declaredProducts packed within the small-quantity limits for each product, in strong inner and outer packaging with the correct marking, and declared to the courier when the label is created. Some dangerous goods, such as fireworks and Christmas cracker snaps, have no small-quantity allowance, so parcel couriers can't carry them at all.

Get any of it wrong and the parcel can be stopped in the network, returned or destroyed, usually at the sender's cost. FlipShip gives you an approved account to ship on, checks your products and packaging, and gives your team a packing card to follow on every parcel.

Got your SDS? Send it with your free product review. Start free review →

Questions

Is an SDS a legal requirement?

For hazardous chemical products, yes. Under UK REACH, the supplier has to provide one. You should keep a copy for every hazardous product you sell.

My supplier won’t send an SDS. What should I do?

Ask again in writing, and explain you need it for transport. If a supplier can’t provide one for a hazardous product, that’s a reason to look for another supplier.

Section 14 is blank. What does that mean?

A blank or missing section 14 isn’t the same as ’not regulated’. Ask the supplier to confirm the transport classification before you ship.

Can I write my own SDS?

If you make and sell a hazardous product yourself, you’re the supplier and responsible for providing one. Most small brands use a specialist or their ingredient supplier’s help to write it.

Do I need to send the SDS with every parcel?

No. But you need it to set up an approved service, and a carrier can ask for it at any time. FlipShip asks for it as part of your free product review.

Sources

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules and carrier policies change, so always check the latest versions. How to post reed diffusers and room sprays →

What is a safety data sheet? And what section 14 tells you