You can get the detail in the IATA document referenced by Royal Mail,
http://www.iata.org/whatwedo/cargo/dgr/Documents/Lithium-Battery-Guidance-20
13-V1.1.pdf or simply http://tinyurl.com/Lithium-IATA but in essence:
Royal Mail
Individuals can't send Lithium or Lithium-ion batteries by post, whether
alone, or with equipment. At all. Anywhere. Lithium or Lithium-ion batteries
inside equipment can only be sent internationally - they are prohibited in
the domestic mails. NiMh or NiCd batteries are only allowed in the domestic
mails if new in unopened original packaging. Business postal users have
fewer restrictions, but still cannot send Lithium or Lithium-ion batteries
on their own anywhere, they must be contained within equipment.
Airline passengers
Some of the restrictions for business users derive from the IATA Dangerous
Goods Regulations, and those essentially outlaw Lithium or Lithium-ion
batteries which have not been tested to meet the regulations - no more
unmarked after-market batteries. Lithium or Lithium-ion batteries in
passengers' baggage is also covered. Portable electronic devices containing
batteries when carried by passengers or crew for personal use should be
carried in carry-on baggage. Spare batteries must be individually protected
to prevent short circuits and carried in carry-on baggage only. Each lithium
battery must not exceed a lithium content of 2 g (for lithium metal or
lithium alloy batteries) or 100Wh (for lithium ion batteries). I think
Olympus batteries are well within the 100Wh limit.
Further, there are country-specific restrictions (which presumably has had a
bearing on Royal Mail's blanket ban).
Thanks for inspiring the research - inconvenient changes have been made, but
most likely for sensible reasons.
Piers
-----Original Message-----
From: Brian Gray [mailto:bsg017@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: 08 February 2013 17:00
To: Olympus List
Subject: Re: [OM] [OT] Posting Batteries prohibited by UK Royal Mail
If lithium ion batteries are as dangerous as some of the restrictions
appear to imply, is there not a risk that somebody will decide that
they are not allowed anywhere on an aircraft either in the cabin or the
hold?! This would make life difficult for anyone carrying modern
equipment from smartphones through OMD's to laptops but one can see the
argument as lithium fires are apparently difficult to extinguish - any
of us who have seen potassium or sodium burn can believe that. I hope
they solve the problem of the Dreamliner fires soon and that it is
faulty charging equipment or anything other than properly assembled
batteries. But even so, lithium is clearly a potentially bad
flammable material to have available to malcontents on aircraft.....???
Brian Gray
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