diff --git a/grails-app/controllers/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataController.groovy b/grails-app/controllers/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataController.groovy
index f563c13bd..f0abade58 100644
--- a/grails-app/controllers/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataController.groovy
+++ b/grails-app/controllers/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataController.groovy
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import org.springframework.web.multipart.MultipartFile
 import static au.org.ala.ecodata.Status.DELETED
 
 class MetadataController {
+    static responseFormats = ['json']
 
     def metadataService, activityService, commonService, projectService, webService
 
@@ -235,17 +236,22 @@ class MetadataController {
         if (file && outputName) {
 
             def data = metadataService.excelWorkbookToMap(file.inputStream, outputName, true)
+            def status = 200
 
             def result
-            if (!data) {
-                response.status = 400
+            if (data.error) {
+                status = 500
+                data.status = 500
+                result = data
+            }
+            else if (!data.success) {
+                status = 400
                 result = [status:400, error:'No data was found that matched the output description identified by the type parameter, please check the template you used to upload the data. ']
             }
             else {
-                result = [status: 200, data:data]
+                result = [status: 200, data:data.success]
             }
-            render result as JSON
-
+            respond(result, status: status)
         }
         else {
             response.status = 400
diff --git a/grails-app/i18n/messages.properties b/grails-app/i18n/messages.properties
index 6ed321f16..606c2b72a 100644
--- a/grails-app/i18n/messages.properties
+++ b/grails-app/i18n/messages.properties
@@ -309,4 +309,8 @@ projectAcitivity.attribution={0}. ({1}) {2} dataset download. Retrieved from {3}
 activityForm.invalidIndex=Form template {0} has invalid index fields {1}
 activityForm.latestVersionIsInDraft = Cannot create a new draft of a form when the current version is a draft
 
-user.userHubs.hubId.unique=Each UserHub must have a unique hubId
\ No newline at end of file
+user.userHubs.hubId.unique=Each UserHub must have a unique hubId
+
+bulkimport.conversionToObjectError=Error parsing data into an object in serial number {0}
+bulkimport.errorGroupBySerialNumber=Error making nested object from multiple rows in serial number {0}
+bulkimport.conversionToFormSectionError=Error parsing data for form section (output) - {0}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/grails-app/services/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataService.groovy b/grails-app/services/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataService.groovy
index ff5ff114c..b82e6b7a1 100644
--- a/grails-app/services/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataService.groovy
+++ b/grails-app/services/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataService.groovy
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import org.apache.poi.ss.usermodel.Sheet
 import org.apache.poi.ss.usermodel.Workbook
 import org.apache.poi.ss.usermodel.WorkbookFactory
 import org.apache.poi.ss.util.CellReference
+import grails.web.mime.MimeType
 
 import java.text.SimpleDateFormat
 import java.util.zip.ZipEntry
@@ -707,48 +708,71 @@ class MetadataService {
         excelImportService.mapSheet(workbook, config)
     }
 
-    List excelWorkbookToMap(InputStream excelWorkbookIn, String activityFormName, Boolean normalise, Integer formVersion = null) {
+    Map excelWorkbookToMap(InputStream excelWorkbookIn, String activityFormName, Boolean normalise, Integer formVersion = null) {
         List result = []
+        List errors = []
         Workbook workbook = WorkbookFactory.create(excelWorkbookIn)
         ActivityForm form = activityFormService.findActivityForm(activityFormName, formVersion)
         form?.sections?.each { FormSection section ->
-            String sectionName = section.name
-            List model = annotatedOutputDataModel(sectionName)
-            String sheetName = XlsExporter.sheetName(sectionName)
-            Sheet sheet = workbook.getSheet(sheetName)
-            def columnMap = excelImportService.getDataHeaders(sheet)
-            def config = [
-                    sheet:sheetName,
-                    startRow:2,
-                    columnMap:columnMap
-            ]
-            List data = excelImportService.mapSheet(workbook, config)
-            List normalisedData = []
-            if(normalise) {
-                data.collect { Map row ->
-                    def normalisedRow = [:]
-                    row.each { cell ->
-                        excelImportService.convertDotNotationToObject(normalisedRow, cell.key, cell.value)
-                        excelImportService.removeEmptyObjects(normalisedRow)
+            try {
+                String sectionName = section.name
+                List model = annotatedOutputDataModel(sectionName)
+                String sheetName = XlsExporter.sheetName(sectionName)
+                Sheet sheet = workbook.getSheet(sheetName)
+                def columnMap = excelImportService.getDataHeaders(sheet)
+                def config = [
+                        sheet:sheetName,
+                        startRow:2,
+                        columnMap:columnMap
+                ]
+                List data = excelImportService.mapSheet(workbook, config)
+                List normalisedData = []
+                if(normalise) {
+                    data.collect { Map row ->
+                        def normalisedRow = [:]
+                        try {
+                            row.each { cell ->
+                                excelImportService.convertDotNotationToObject(normalisedRow, cell.key, cell.value)
+                                excelImportService.removeEmptyObjects(normalisedRow)
+                            }
+
+                            addOutputSpeciesIdToSpeciesData(normalisedRow, model)
+                            normalisedData << normalisedRow
+                        }
+                        catch (Exception ex) {
+                            errors << [message:  messageSource.getMessage('bulkimport.conversionToObjectError', [row.serial].toArray(), '', Locale.default), error: ex.message]
+                        }
                     }
+                }
 
-                    addOutputSpeciesIdToSpeciesData(normalisedRow, model)
-                    normalisedData << normalisedRow
+
+                List rollUpData = []
+                Map groupedBySerial = normalisedData.groupBy {it[OutputUploadTemplateBuilder.SERIAL_NUMBER_DATA]}
+                groupedBySerial.each {  key, List rows ->
+                    try {
+                        rollUpData << rollUpDataIntoSingleElement(rows, model)
+                    }
+                    catch (Exception ex) {
+                        errors << [message:  messageSource.getMessage('bulkimport.errorGroupBySerialNumber', [key].toArray(), '', Locale.default), error: ex.message]
+                    }
                 }
-            }
 
-            List rollUpData = []
-            Map groupedBySerial = normalisedData.groupBy {it[OutputUploadTemplateBuilder.SERIAL_NUMBER_DATA]}
-            groupedBySerial.each {  key, List rows ->
-                rollUpData << rollUpDataIntoSingleElement(rows, model)
+                result.addAll(rollUpData.collect {
+                    [[outputName: activityFormName, data: it]]
+                })
+            }
+            catch (Exception ex) {
+                errors << [message:  messageSource.getMessage('bulkimport.conversionToFormSectionError', [section.name].toArray(), '', Locale.default), error: ex.message]
             }
-
-            result.addAll(rollUpData.collect {
-                [[outputName: activityFormName, data: it]]
-            })
         }
 
-        result
+        if (errors) {
+            String errorMessage = errors.collect { it.message + " - " + it.error }.join("<br/>")
+            return [error: errorMessage]
+        }
+        else {
+            return [success: result]
+        }
     }
 
     boolean isRowValidNextMemberOfArray(Map row, List models) {
diff --git a/src/test/groovy/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataServiceSpec.groovy b/src/test/groovy/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataServiceSpec.groovy
index 7e2a5eae2..72cf817d5 100644
--- a/src/test/groovy/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataServiceSpec.groovy
+++ b/src/test/groovy/au/org/ala/ecodata/MetadataServiceSpec.groovy
@@ -270,7 +270,8 @@ class MetadataServiceSpec extends MongoSpec implements ServiceUnitTest<MetadataS
         def file = new File("src/test/resources/bulk_import_example.xlsx").newInputStream()
 
         when:
-        def content = service.excelWorkbookToMap(file, 'form1', true, null)
+        def resp = service.excelWorkbookToMap(file, 'form1', true, null)
+        def content = resp.success
 
         then:
         content.size() == 2