                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

UNLAWFUL USE OF, FILLING OR REFILLING, OR TRAFFICKING IN CONTAINERS (§
18.2-494)

A. Unless a qualifying emergency is in effect, no person except the owner
thereof or person authorized in writing by the owner shall fill or refill with
liquefied petroleum gas, or any other gas or compound, a liquefied petroleum gas
container or buy, sell, offer for sale, give, take, loan, deliver, or permit to
be delivered or otherwise use, dispose of, or traffic in a liquefied petroleum
gas container or containers if the container bears upon the surface thereof in
plainly legible characters the name, initials, mark, or other device of the
owner. Nor shall any person other than the owner of a liquefied petroleum gas
container or a person authorized in writing by the owner deface, erase,
obliterate, cover up, or otherwise remove or conceal any name, mark, initial, or
device thereon.

B. When a qualifying emergency is in effect, a residential customer who can
demonstrate that he has less than a 24-hour supply of liquefied petroleum gas
shall first make a good faith effort to procure delivery of liquefied petroleum
gas from the owner of the liquefied petroleum gas container. If the owner of the
liquefied petroleum gas container or other person authorized in writing by the
owner is unable to make a scheduled delivery or fulfill the residential
customer&#8217;s good faith request within 24 hours, the customer may have an
emergency supplier fill, refill, or otherwise deliver liquefied petroleum gas
into the customer&#8217;s liquefied petroleum gas container, provided that the
emergency supplier ensures that such liquefied petroleum gas container, and the
devices and pipelines operated in connection with such container, have been
inspected and certified as required by law. Within five business days of
filling, refilling, or otherwise delivering liquefied petroleum gas to the
customer&#8217;s container, the emergency supplier shall give written notice to
the owner of the liquefied petroleum gas container that includes (i) the name
and address of the customer; (ii) the date of the filling, refilling, or
delivery; and (iii) the amount of liquefied petroleum gas that was placed in the
customer&#8217;s container. The emergency supplier shall assume all
responsibility and liability for injury to persons or property related to the
emergency refilling of the liquefied petroleum gas container.
			When an emergency supplier delivers liquefied petroleum gas to a residential
customer pursuant to this subsection, neither such emergency supplier nor the
owner of the liquefied petroleum gas container may charge any penalty or fee in
addition to the filling, refilling, or delivery fees that are usually charged to
other customers in the course of business during a nonemergency.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 18.1-400.2; 1970, c. 442; 1975, cc. 14, 15; 2023, c. 531.