“COSHH symbols” are the nine hazard pictograms set by the GB CLP Regulation: red-bordered white diamonds with a black symbol. They show explosive, flammable, oxidising, gas under pressure, corrosive, acute toxicity, health hazard (exclamation mark), serious health hazard and environmental hazards. They tell you what a chemical can do, not how to control it. That comes from the label, the safety data sheet and your COSHH assessment.
Most people call them COSHH symbols because they meet them on products covered by the COSHH Regulations. Strictly, they come from a different law: the Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) Regulation, which in Great Britain is known as GB CLP. This guide explains each symbol, the words that come with it, and how to use the information when you assess and control the risk.
How many COSHH symbols are there?
There are nine. Each is a diamond with a red border, a white background and a black symbol, and each carries a GHS code from GHS01 to GHS09. A product may show more than one if it has more than one type of hazard.
The nine COSHH symbols and their meanings
| Code | Symbol | Hazard | What it warns about |
|---|---|---|---|
| GHS01 | Exploding bomb | Explosive | Explosives, and some self-reactive substances and organic peroxides that can explode when heated |
| GHS02 | Flame | Flammable | Flammable gases, aerosols, liquids and solids; substances that self-heat, ignite in air or give off flammable gas in contact with water |
| GHS03 | Flame over a circle | Oxidising | Oxidising gases, liquids and solids that can cause or intensify a fire |
| GHS04 | Gas cylinder | Gas under pressure | Compressed, liquefied, refrigerated or dissolved gases that may explode if heated, or cause cold burns |
| GHS05 | Corrosion | Corrosive | Substances that cause severe skin burns or serious eye damage, and substances corrosive to metals |
| GHS06 | Skull and crossbones | Acute toxicity | Substances that can be fatal or toxic if swallowed, inhaled or in contact with skin |
| GHS07 | Exclamation mark | Health hazard / hazardous to the ozone layer | Less severe effects: harmful, skin or eye irritant, skin sensitiser, may cause drowsiness or respiratory irritation |
| GHS08 | Health hazard (silhouette with starburst) | Serious health hazard | Longer-term or serious effects: cancer, damage to fertility or the unborn child, genetic defects, respiratory sensitisation, organ damage, aspiration hazard |
| GHS09 | Dead tree and fish | Hazardous to the environment | Substances toxic to aquatic life, with short or long-lasting effects |
Source: HSE, Hazard pictograms (symbols); GB CLP Regulation, Annex V (pictogram codes and hazard classes).
The two symbols people mix up
The exclamation mark (GHS07) and the health hazard silhouette (GHS08) cause the most confusion. Both relate to health, but they mean different levels of concern.
The exclamation mark covers effects that are usually short-term and less severe, such as skin or eye irritation, or drowsiness. The silhouette with the starburst covers serious and often long-term harm: cancer, reproductive effects, sensitisation of the lungs and damage to organs. A product with GHS08 deserves a closer look at the safety data sheet and stricter controls, even if it does not seem harmful when you use it.
The skull and crossbones (GHS06) is different again. It means acute toxicity at the more severe end, where a single exposure can cause serious harm or death.
Why more cleaning products now show the corrosive symbol
If a product your team has used for years now carries the corrosive symbol, the product has not necessarily changed. HSE explains that GB CLP uses stricter classification methods than the old system for mixtures containing corrosive or irritant substances, so more cleaning products are now labelled as hazardous. A product classed as causing serious eye damage carries the corrosive pictogram with hazard statement H318. One classed as an eye irritant carries the exclamation mark with H319. HSE stresses the product is no more or less hazardous than before; the label is simply more precise.
Old orange symbols and the new diamonds
Before CLP, chemicals were supplied under the CHIP Regulations, which required hazard symbols printed in black on an orange-yellow background. HSE confirms that CLP replaced CHIP on 1 June 2015. Most of the old symbols have an equivalent diamond. The gas cylinder and the health hazard silhouette had no CHIP equivalent.
You may still find old orange labels on very old stock in stores and cupboards. Do not assume the hazard is the same as the modern classification. Check the current safety data sheet from the supplier, and dispose of old stock you no longer need.
Reading the rest of the label
The pictogram is only one part of the label. A GB CLP label also gives:
- A signal word. “Danger” means a more severe hazard. “Warning” means a less severe one. Only one appears.
- Hazard statements (H statements). Standard phrases describing the nature of the hazard, such as “Causes serious eye damage” or “Toxic if swallowed”. Each has a code, for example H318.
- Precautionary statements (P statements). Standard phrases giving measures to prevent or minimise harm, such as wearing eye protection or what to do after contact. HSE notes there are usually no more than six on a label.
- Product identifier and supplier details, so you can match the product to its safety data sheet and contact the supplier.
Transport labels on drums and tankers are a separate system for road, rail, sea and air. They look similar but follow transport regulations rather than CLP.
Safety data sheets
A safety data sheet (SDS) gives much more detail than the label can. HSE says an SDS is required whenever a hazardous chemical is supplied for use at work, and also for some mixtures that are not classified as hazardous but contain small amounts of a hazardous substance. Its purpose is to give employers the information they need to carry out the risk assessment required by COSHH.
Keep an up-to-date SDS for every hazardous product you use, make sure staff know where to find them, and ask the supplier for one if it is missing.
From symbols to a COSHH assessment
A symbol tells you a hazard exists. It does not tell you how much risk your staff face, because that depends on how much of the product is used, how often, how it is applied and who is exposed. That is the job of a COSHH assessment. A practical sequence is:
- List every substance in use, including those produced by the work, such as dust, fumes and mists, which carry no label at all.
- Check the label and SDS for each one: pictograms, signal word, H and P statements.
- Work out who could be exposed, by which route (breathing in, skin contact, swallowing, eyes) and how much.
- Decide on controls, starting with eliminating or substituting the substance, then engineering controls such as extraction, then safe systems of work and PPE as the last line. Our hierarchy of control guide explains the order.
- Record the findings, train staff, and review the assessment when products or processes change.
Our COSHH Regulations explained guide covers the legal duties behind each step. Products that carry the flame symbol may also bring you under the DSEAR Regulations 2002, which deal with fire and explosion risks from dangerous substances.
Storing products with different symbols
Pictograms are a quick guide to what should not be stored together. Oxidisers (flame over a circle) can intensify a fire involving flammables, and some corrosives react with each other. The SDS section on handling and storage tells you what a product is incompatible with. Keep spill kits suited to the substances you hold; our spill kits and chemical control course covers choosing and using them.
Frequently asked questions
How many COSHH symbols are there?
There are nine hazard pictograms under GB CLP: explosive, flammable, oxidising, gas under pressure, corrosive, acute toxicity, health hazard (exclamation mark), serious health hazard and hazardous to the environment. They are often called COSHH symbols.
What colour are COSHH symbols?
Current symbols are a black pictogram on a white background inside a diamond with a red border. The older CHIP symbols were black on an orange-yellow background and have been replaced.
What does the exclamation mark COSHH symbol mean?
The exclamation mark (GHS07) warns of less severe health hazards, such as skin or eye irritation, skin sensitisation, harmful effects if swallowed or inhaled, drowsiness or respiratory irritation. It is also used for substances hazardous to the ozone layer.
What is the difference between Danger and Warning on a label?
They are the two signal words under GB CLP. Danger is used for more severe hazards and Warning for less severe ones. A label shows only one of them.
Are COSHH symbols and CLP symbols the same?
Yes. The symbols come from the CLP Regulation, which governs how chemicals are classified and labelled. People call them COSHH symbols because COSHH is the law that requires employers to assess and control the risks they warn about.
Are the old orange hazard symbols still valid?
No. CLP replaced the old CHIP system on 1 June 2015. If you find old orange labels on stored products, check the current safety data sheet and dispose of stock you no longer need.
Why does my cleaning product now have a corrosive symbol?
HSE explains that GB CLP uses stricter classification methods for mixtures than the old system, so more cleaning products are labelled as hazardous. Products that can cause serious eye damage carry the corrosive pictogram. The product itself is no more hazardous than before.
Where to learn more
- COSHH Awareness Training: half-day course on CLP labels, how substances harm and safe working
- COSHH Assessor Training: one day for staff who carry out COSHH assessments
- COSHH Regulations explained
- DSEAR Regulations 2002 explained
Talk to KeyOstas
Knowing the symbols is the starting point. Our COSHH Awareness course uses your own products and labels so staff leave knowing exactly what the substances they handle can do and how to stay safe. Delivered at your site for up to 12 delegates.
Send an enquiry or call +44 (0)330 056 9534.