Definition - What does Cancelled test mean?
A cancelled test, within the context of drug and alcohol testing, is a test or specimen that cannot be used or reported due to some error or other circumstance. U.S. federal law defines a set of circumstances under which a test may deemed cancelled test for alcohol and drug testing.
A cancelled drug or alcohol test cannot be considered or treated as either a positive or negative result. Thus, if federal law requires that an employee have negative result prior to beginning work or returning to work, a cancelled test is insufficient. Likewise, a cancelled test may not be used as evidence of unlawful drug or alcohol use by an employee.
SureHire explains Cancelled test
There are various reasons a drug or alcohol test may be deemed cancelled. For example, under DOT regulations, certain errors in the specimen collection process such as a failure in the chain of custody will result in a cancellation of the test. An alcohol test may be cancelled if the test technician fails to follow proper procedures for preparing the equipment or assessing the results. A test may also be deemed cancelled in the event of an equipment failure.
In the event that a federally required drug or alcohol test must be cancelled, then specific procedures must be followed when rescheduling or performing a new test.
Cancelled tests also do not count toward any mandatory minimum number of drugs tests (such as for random drug testing) that an employer must perform. Nor can a cancelled test be used to justify to execution of a non-DOT alcohol test.
