Diesel Fuels
Twenty years of CPSC NEISS emergency-room records for this consumer product category, combined with demographic breakdowns, multi-year injury trends, and matching recall notices.
Home Workshop Tools & Equipment · CPSC Code 962
Up 22% over 5 years
The verdict
Diesel Fuels carry a danger score of 38/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 500 ER-treated injuries a year that are rising by about 22% over the last five years.
- 38/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 500
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 16.0%
- end in hospital admission
- 45-54
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 962 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 38/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for diesel fuels - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume500 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)16.0%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend+22%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Diesel Fuels (CPSC product code 962, in the Home Workshop Tools & Equipment category) generate an estimated 500 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 9,992 ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 38/100 for this category (low risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are rising by about 22% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2024 (1,096 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2020 (159 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for diesel fuels is poisoning to the all parts body, accounting for approximately 2,887 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by burns, thermal to the face (1,828 cases). The 45-54 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 1,962 cases over the NEISS window, and males appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 16.0% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 0 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how diesel fuels fail in real households. Every figure on this page comes from CPSC-published data: NEISS projects national estimates from a probability sample of about 100 U.S. hospital emergency departments, while SaferProducts.gov collects voluntary reports from consumers, manufacturers, and clinicians. The danger score, trend indicators, and demographic breakdowns update automatically when CPSC releases a new yearly NEISS file, which is why this page is dated 2024-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.
Annual Injury Estimates (2005–2024)
Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only
Who Gets Injured?
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 1,103 | 362 | |
| 5-14 | 50 | 0 | |
| 15-24 | 1,448 | 14 | |
| 25-34 | 1,007 | 194 | |
| 35-44 | 1,517 | 170 | |
| 45-54 | 1,428 | 534 | |
| 55-64 | 998 | 158 | |
| 65-74 | 436 | 192 | |
| 75+ | 379 | 0 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| All Parts Body | Poisoning | |
| Face | Burns, Thermal | |
| Lower Arm | Burns, Thermal | |
| Lower Leg | Burns, Thermal | |
| Hand | Burns, Thermal | |
| Eyeball | Other | |
| All Parts Body | Anoxia | |
| Upper Trunk | Burns, Thermal | |
| Face | Other | |
| Eyeball | Burn, Chemical | |
| Knee | Strain, Sprain | |
| Upper Leg | Burns, Thermal | |
| Lower Trunk | Strain, Sprain | |
| Eyeball | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Head | Internal Injury |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
66YOM WITH BURNS TO HIS FACE AND RIGHT FOREARM. WAS BURNING BRUSH AND POURED DIESEL FUEL.NO FD ATTENDED. DX: MULTIPLE FIRST DEGREE THERMAL BURNS TO FACE AND RIGHT FOREARM.
16YOM ACCIDENTAL DEISEL FLUID INGESTION AFTER LAYING UNDER VEHICLE AND COUPLE DROPS OF DIESEL FUEL WENT INTO HIS MOUTH WHEN LINE BROKE. DX: ACCIDENTAL HYDROCARBON INGESTION
25 YOM POURED DIESEL FUEL ON FIRE CAUGHT SHIRT ON FIRE INJURED FACE AND LOWER ARM FIRE DEPT DID NOT ATTEND DX THERMAL BURNS FACE AND LOWER ARMS
16YOM COMPLAINS OF FEELING BAD ALL OVER. WAS AT A BONFIRE LAST NIGHT AND SOMEONE THREW DIESEL FUEL ON THE FIRE AND HE BREATHED IN THE FUMES. HE WAS ALSO DRINKING ALCOHOL AND USING CANNIBAS. BAC: NOT STATED. DX: HEADACHE
34YOM WAS FILLING UP A TRACTOR WITH DIESEL FUEL WHEN IT CAUGHT FIRE SUSTAINED THERMAL BURNS TO FACE, HANDS, CHEST, FOREARMS DX: THERMAL BURNS
22 YOM WITH NAUSEA AFTER INGESTING DIESEL FUEL AT 1100 YESTERDAY. HE WAS TRYING TO SIPHON THE GAS WITH HIS MOUTH AND ACCIDENTALLY DRANK SOME OF IT. DX ACCIDENTAL INGESTION OF SUBSTANCE
84 YOM SOB FROM DIESEL CAN IN PICKUP DX; EXPOSURE TO FUMES
22 YOM EXPERIENCED A FLASH FIRE BURN TO FACE THAT WAS FUELED BY BRAKE CLEANER AND DIESEL FUEL ON THE FLOOR IGNITED BY A SPARK WHILE WORKING ON HIS BOAT. FD NS. DX: FACIAL BURN FIRST DEGREE.
46 YOM WAS SETTING UP A BONFIRE WITH HIS FRIENDS EARLIER TODAY AT HOME. AS HE WAS SPREADING DIESEL ONTO THE FIRE, HE LOST HIS FOOTING AND FELL FORWARD INTO THE FIRE. DX: 15% TBSA PARTIAL THICKNESS FLASH BURNS TO BILATERAL UPPER EXTREMITIES AND BACK.
77YOM PATIENT SLIPPED AND FELL ON DIESEL FUEL AT THE GAS STATION. DX: ABRASION OF LEFT ELBOW, INFECTED ABRASION OF LEFT ELBOW, GROUND-LEVEL FALL, SPRAIN OF LEFT SHOULDER
59YOF, WAS STEPPING OUT OF HER CAR THIS MORNING WHEN SHE SLIPPED ON A WET OIL SPOT AND FELL, LANDED ONTO LEFT SIDE AND STRUCK HEAD ON CONCRETE, NO LOC OR THINNERS, DX: FACIAL TRAUMA
35YOM WAS AT A GAS STATION WHEN THE DIESEL HOSE BURST AND SPRAYED DIESEL FUEL INTO HIS FACE AND DEVELOPED DIFFICULTY BREATHING NAUSEA DX: TOXIC EFFECT OF A HYDROCARBON
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to diesel fuels on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are diesel fuels?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, diesel fuels have a danger score of 38/100 (low risk). An estimated 500 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from diesel fuels?
The most common injury is poisoning to the all parts body, accounting for approximately 2,887 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from diesel fuels increasing or decreasing?
Up 22% over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for diesel fuels injuries?
The 45-54 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 1,962 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by diesel fuels?
Of all ER visits involving diesel fuels, approximately 16.0% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (84.0%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with diesel fuels?
You can file a consumer incident report at SaferProducts.gov, the official CPSC reporting portal. Reports help the CPSC identify emerging hazards and trigger investigations or recalls. You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.
Related Products in Home Workshop Tools & Equipment
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 38/100 score as relative risk between products, not your personal odds of injury.
- See where this category ranks against every other tracked product. Full rankings
- Injuries cluster in the 45-54 age group, take extra care if that describes your household.
- Check for active recalls on this product before you assume it is safe. CPSC recalls
NEISS estimates ER-treated injuries from a national probability sample of hospitals; they do not capture injuries treated elsewhere or not treated at all.
Data: CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments. This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, scored, and verified.
