Carrier Files
Documented carrier outcomes — what was missing at entry, what was installed, and what the New Entrant Safety Audit found. No names. No DOT numbers. Outcome data published in full.
Operation type
Owner-operator · dry van · 1 power unit
Authority granted
10 months before New Entrant Safety Audit
Entered LaunchPath
Month 2 of 18-month window
Audit window remaining
16 months at enrollment
Region
Southeast
SITUATION AT ENTRY
DQ file existed as a folder — no formal structure. Employment verification section incomplete for prior employer contacts. MVR pulled once at hire; no annual review scheduled. Medical certificate on file; no tracking system for expiration or renewal. §391 gap score at entry: four of seven required elements either absent or non-compliant.
WHAT WAS INSTALLED
DQ file architecture — all seven required elements indexed and tabbed. File organized for immediate audit presentation.
Annual MVR review calendar installed with 30-day advance flag.
Annual driver inquiry procedure — FMCSA Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse query added.
Expiration log with 30/60/90-day renewal reminders. Certificate filed in DQ file with notation of issue and expiration dates.
AUDIT OUTCOME
Safety Rating
Satisfactory
Acute Violations
0
Recordable Violations
1
Authority Retained
YES
NOTES§391.51 — incomplete employment history for one prior position. Corrective documentation submitted and accepted prior to audit close.
WHERE THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN
Incomplete employment verification and absent MVR review constitutes a §391.51 violation pattern. A pattern of DQ deficiencies without corrective documentation typically results in a Conditional rating. Conditional carriers face expedited follow-up review, increased broker scrutiny, and resistance from insurance underwriters during renewal.
CARRIER NOTE
"I thought a folder was enough. I didn't know there was a specific structure FMCSA expected to find."
Operation type
Small fleet · dry van · 3 power units · 4 drivers
Authority granted
6 months before New Entrant Safety Audit
Entered LaunchPath
Month 6 of 18-month window
Audit window remaining
12 months at enrollment
Region
Midwest
SITUATION AT ENTRY
Drug & alcohol policy document existed — carrier believed this satisfied §382 requirements. No consortium enrollment on file. Pre-employment test records absent for two of four drivers. No designated Medical Review Officer. No random testing pool membership. Supervisor training not documented. Carrier was operating under the assumption that having a written policy was sufficient.
WHAT WAS INSTALLED
Consortium enrollment confirmed, MRO designation letter executed and filed. Testing calendar established with annual random selections tracked.
Pre-employment test records retrieved and filed for all four drivers. Gap closed prior to audit.
Supervisor training certificates obtained and filed for all supervisory personnel.
Annual pool membership confirmation on file. First random selection documented per consortium protocol.
AUDIT OUTCOME
Safety Rating
Satisfactory
Acute Violations
0
Recordable Violations
0
Authority Retained
YES
WHERE THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN
Absence of consortium enrollment and missing pre-employment test records constitutes §382.301 and §382.305 violations. Either finding is classified as an acute violation under FMCSA's acute/critical framework. A single acute violation triggers an automatic Unsatisfactory safety rating. Unsatisfactory-rated carriers cannot operate — authority is subject to revocation within 45 days of the finding.
CARRIER NOTE
Section omitted — carrier declined to provide a statement.
Operation type
Owner-operator · flatbed · 1 power unit
Authority granted
5 months before New Entrant Safety Audit
Entered LaunchPath
Month 5 of 18-month window
Audit window remaining
13 months at enrollment
Region
Mid-Atlantic
SITUATION AT ENTRY
No systematic vehicle preventive maintenance records. DVIRs not consistently completed — treated as optional. HOS logs present but inconsistent: missing off-duty/sleeper berth notations across several weeks of records. Equipment file contained only title and registration. No PM interval documented. Operator was running the truck and running the business simultaneously — records were not the operational priority.
WHAT WAS INSTALLED
DVIR daily completion standard and 90-day retention protocol installed. Procedure laminated in cab.
Preventive maintenance schedule established by mileage and calendar interval. First scheduled PM event completed and documented.
HOS log review procedure — weekly self-review, notation correction process, six-month retention standard.
PM record tab, DVIR retention tab, and inspection history tab. File formatted for immediate audit presentation.
AUDIT OUTCOME
Safety Rating
Satisfactory
Acute Violations
0
Recordable Violations
2
Authority Retained
YES
NOTES§396.11 — DVIRs missing for 3 pre-enrollment dates (historical gap; corrective action plan accepted). §395.8 — HOS notation gaps on 4 pre-enrollment logs (historical gap; corrective action plan accepted).
WHERE THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN
Two recordable violations with no corrective documentation in place would have produced a Conditional rating. Conditional-rated carriers are flagged for expedited follow-up compliance review. The combination of maintenance and HOS deficiencies — without systematic records — also exposes the carrier to individual driver violations under §395 and §396 during roadside inspections, contributing to CSA score deterioration and making broker qualification more difficult.
CARRIER NOTE
"I was running the truck and running the business. The records were never the priority. Now they are."
PRIVACY STANDARD — ALL FILES
| Field | Standard |
|---|---|
| Names | No carrier names, driver names, or owner names published. |
| DOT numbers | Never included. |
| Location | Region only — e.g., 'Southeast,' 'Midwest.' No city or state. |
| Operation type | Published — e.g., 'Owner-operator, dry van, 1 power unit.' |
| Outcome data | Published in full: audit result, violations cited, authority status. |