Every carrier who hauls regulated freight eventually runs into the hazardous materials table. It's a federal reference document that tells you how a hazardous material must be described, classified, packaged, marked, and labeled before it moves on a public road. If you're hauling fuel, liquid CO2, dry ice, or any other regulated commodity, the table is where the paperwork starts. This article breaks down how to read it and how HaulerPro's hazmat mode keeps your records straight on every load. For a broader look at managing tanker and bulk operations, see the tanker TMS guide for fuel and bulk haulers.
What the Hazardous Materials Table Is
The hazardous materials table is published by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and appears in 49 CFR Part 172.101. It lists regulated materials by their proper shipping name and assigns each one a set of required data elements. The table is the authoritative source for how a commodity must appear on shipping papers, placards, and labels. If there's a conflict between what a broker told you and what the table says, the table governs.
The table has ten columns. The ones carriers encounter most often are:
- Symbols (Column 1): Letters like "+" (fixed class regardless of quantity), "D" (domestic use only), "I" (international use), or "A" and "W" (applicable to air and water transport respectively). A "+" means the proper shipping name, hazard class, and packing group are fixed and cannot be altered even if the material technically meets a different definition.
- Proper Shipping Name (Column 2): The exact name that must appear on shipping papers. "Diesel fuel" is not acceptable if the table requires "Fuel, diesel." Use the table's wording, not a trade name or a shorthand.
- Hazard Class or Division (Column 3): Numbers like 2.1 (flammable gas), 3 (flammable liquid), 6.1 (toxic), or 8 (corrosive). This drives which placard goes on the trailer.
- Identification Number (Column 4): A four-digit number preceded by UN or NA. UN numbers are assigned by the United Nations and are used internationally. NA numbers are assigned by DOT for North American use. You'll see both on domestic loads.
- Packing Group (Column 5): I, II, or III, from most dangerous to least. Packing Group I materials require more robust packaging than Packing Group III. Some entries have no packing group (gases and infectious substances, for example).
- Labels Required (Column 6): The label codes that must appear on each package.
UN Numbers vs. NA Numbers
This trips up a lot of carriers. A UN number (for example, UN 1203 for gasoline) is recognized in international hazmat regulations. An NA number (for example, NA 1993 for combustible liquids not otherwise specified) is a DOT designation used in North America that may not have a UN equivalent. For domestic freight, both are valid when the table assigns them. The proper shipping name entry in the table will tell you which identifier applies to that commodity.
The most important thing: copy the identifier exactly as it appears on the shipping papers you receive. Do not abbreviate, invert the digits, or drop the UN or NA prefix. An auditor or enforcement officer checking your paperwork will compare what's on the shipping document against the table entry.
Packing Groups and What They Mean on the Road
Packing Group (PG) I, II, or III tells you how dangerous PHMSA has determined a commodity to be within its hazard class. Packing Group I is the highest danger. This affects the packaging specification the shipper must use, but it also affects your documentation. When you enter hazmat details on a load, the packing group needs to match what's on the shipping papers.
Mismatched packing groups are a common paperwork error during roadside inspections. Enforcement officers commonly compare the driver's shipping papers against the table entry for that UN or NA number. If your shipping papers say PG II and the table says the material is PG I for that concentration, that's a violation on the shipper's end that you may still be asked to explain. Knowing the table helps you catch those discrepancies before you leave the dock.
Emergency Response Information and the Emergency Phone Requirement
Column 8B of the hazardous materials table indicates whether an emergency response telephone number is required on the shipping papers for that material. For most regulated quantities of hazardous materials, an emergency response number must be on the shipping papers and reachable 24 hours a day. This is separate from placarding. Even if a load is below placard threshold, the emergency phone requirement may still apply.
The emergency phone number must connect to someone who has knowledge of the material and can provide emergency response guidance, or it must connect to an emergency response service like CHEMTREC. A general dispatch number that rings unanswered at 2 a.m. does not satisfy the requirement. Verify this with your shipper before departure.
How HaulerPro's Hazmat Mode Keeps Your Records Organized
HaulerPro's hazmat mode is a company setting you turn on in Settings under Freight and operations. Once it's active, each load carries a dedicated HM details section where you enter the UN or NA number, the proper shipping name, the hazard class, the packing group, the quantity, and the emergency phone number. Those fields map directly to the columns in the hazardous materials table, so the data your dispatcher enters is the same data an inspector would check against the table.
When a rate confirmation is scanned on a load, hazmat mode pre-fills the HM detail fields and holds them until a manager or dispatcher confirms them. That confirmation step exists because compliance stays with you, not with an automated fill. You review the populated fields before the load goes to the driver.
At pickup, the driver takes a photo of the shipping papers through the driver app. That photo attaches to the load record. If there's ever a question about what was on the shipping papers when the load left the dock, the record is there.
HaulerPro also keeps HM training records for each driver. Each record has an expiration date. Managers get in-app reminders before a driver's HM training expires, so a driver with a lapsed certification doesn't accidentally get dispatched on a regulated load. The records and the reminders are inside the app. HaulerPro stores the documentation. Compliance decisions stay with you.
HaulerPro does not check a shipment against the hazardous materials regulations or tell you whether a commodity is properly classified. That determination belongs to the shipper and, ultimately, to you as the carrier accepting the load. Use the table, use your training, and verify the shipping papers before you move.
A Note on Staying Current
PHMSA updates 49 CFR Part 172.101 periodically. New commodities are added, proper shipping names change, and identification numbers get revised. Always verify against the current table, not a printed copy from two years ago. The official source is ecfr.gov. If you're unsure about a specific entry or a commodity that doesn't appear to be in the table, your shipper's safety officer or a certified hazmat consultant can help you sort it out before the load moves.
For more on managing tanker and bulk freight operations end to end, the tanker TMS guide covers dispatch, invoicing, and documentation for fuel and bulk carriers.
HaulerPro's hazmat mode is available on every plan. Try it on your next regulated load. Start your 14-day free trial, no credit card required, and see how organized hazmat records can be when they live on the load instead of in a folder in the cab.