What Are FMCSRs?

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) are a set of rules and guidelines established by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to attempt to regulate safety procedures of drivers operating commercial vehicles. In this article, we will discuss what FMCSA regulations are and why they are important for the motor carriers.

What are FMCSRs?

FMCSRs are a set of regulations that govern the operation of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in the United States. These regulations cover a wide range of topics, including:

• Driver qualifications
• Hours of service
• Vehicle maintenance
• Hazardous materials transportation
• Drug and alcohol testing program requirements, when applicable.

They are designed to promote safety on the roads by way of standardizing set requirements.

Why are FMCSRs Important?

FMCSRs were designed to help level the playing field for motor carriers. By setting regulations that all companies must follow, FMCSRs prevent some companies from gaining an unfair advantage by cutting corners on compliance measures.

And while, yes, FMCSRs were put in place to promote safety, we've discussed in our blog that compliance doesn't mean safety. Just because you follow federal regulations, doesn't mean your fleet, by any means, is a safe fleet.

Who Must Comply With FMCSRs

According to the FMCSA website, any motor carrier that has drivers that operate a self-propelled or towed motor vehicle used on a highway in interstate commerce to transport passengers or property when the vehicle:

• Has a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) or gross combination weight rating (GCWR), or gross vehicle weight or gross combination weight, of 4,536 kg (10,001 pounds) or more, whichever is greater; or
• Is designed or used to transport more than 8 passengers (including the driver) for compensation; or
• Is designed or used to transport more than 15 passengers, including the driver, and is not used to transport passengers for compensation; or
• Is used in transporting material found by the Secretary of Transportation to be hazardous under 49 U.S.C. 5103 and transported in a quantity requiring placarding under regulations prescribed by the Secretary under 49 CFR, subtitle B, chapter I, subchapter C (49 CFR Parts 171-177).

This applies to everyone involved in the operation of a commercial motor vehicle - whether it's truck or bus drivers, or anyone else involved in the transportation of goods and/or passengers using a commercial vehicle.

If a driver fails to comply with FMCSRs, it will affect the carrier’s safety record.

How Can Carriers Comply with FMCSRs?

The FMCSA provides resources and guidance for companies to comply with FMCSRs.

Image source: https://csa.fmcsa.dot.gov/Documents/What-Is-CSA-Factsheet.pdf

Companies can comply with the FMCRSs by monitoring and maintaining, what they label as the seven Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, or simply, the BASICs:

1. Unsafe Driving: Speeding, reckless driving, improper lane change, inattention, no seatbelts
2. Crash Indicator: Histories of crash involvement (not public)
3. Hours-of-Service Compliance: Noncompliance with HOS regulations, including logbooks
4. Vehicle Maintenance: Brakes, lights, defects, failure to make required repairs
5. Controlled Substances/Alcohol: Use/possession of controlled substances/alcohol
6. Hazardous Materials Compliance: Leaking containers, improper packaging and/or placarding (not public)
7. Driver Fitness: Invalid license, medically unfit to operate CMV

The process for which the FMCSA determines if carriers are safety risks is as follows:

• Carriers are grouped with other carriers that have similar number of safety events
• They're then ranked and assigned a percentile from 0 to 100 (100 being the worst performance)
• Based on the highest percentile rankings, the carrier is prioritized for intervention.

What Happens If You're Deemed High Risk by the FMCSA?

Failure to comply with FMCSRs can result in serious consequences for motor carriers. The FMCSA has responsibility to perform investigations to ensure safety and compliance surrounding FMCSRs. Additionally, the FMCSA has the authority to issue fines, shut down operations, or even revoke a company’s operating authority if they are found to be in violation of FMCSRs. Companies may even face legal action and damage to their reputation if they are found to be non-compliant.

Furthermore, a motor carrier is at extreme risk of getting sued if a driver were to be out of compliance with FMCSRs. Billboard lawyers are constantly hunting for their next nuclear verdict victim, so by not complying with compliance regulations, you as the motor carrier are placing a huge target on your back.

The FMCSA Will Conduct a Safety Investigation

If you are deemed high risk, the FMCSA will conduct what's called a "Safety Investigation" and conduct action steps.

According to the FMCSA website, the intervention process will look as follows:

Early Contact:

As a carrier, you will witness two types of Early Contact intervention:

• Warning Letters: "These letters notify motor carriers early on about their safety performance and compliance problems, and the consequences of not improving, which may include either Onsite or Offsite investigations.
• Targeted Roadside Inspection: "Conducted at a permanent or temporary roadside inspection location, these inspections are prompted by data that identify a carrier's specific safety problems."

Investigation

There are three types of investigations, which can take place remotely or on-site:

• Offsite Investigation: "An SI requests copies of documents from a carrier and reviews the documents remotely, to identify specific safety performance and compliance problems"
• Onsite Focused Investigation: "An SI focuses on specific safety performance and compliance problems at the carrier's place of business, and may interview employees and perform vehicle inspections."
• Onsite Comprehensive Investigation: "An SI reviews the entire safety operation at a carrier's place of business and may interview employees and perform vehicle inspections."

Follow-On:

There are four type of "Follow-On" interventions:

• Cooperative Safety Plan (CSP): "A voluntary plan a carrier may implement with the help of SIs to address safety problems. This plan may be used alone or with a Notice of Violation (NOV), but it cannot replace a Notice of Claim (NOC)."
• Notice of Violation (NOV): "A formal notice that violations are severe enough to warrant formal action, but not civil penalties. To avoid further intervention from FMCSA, the carrier must take corrective action and provide evidence of it, or contest the violations."
• Notice of Claim (NOC): "A formal notice that violations are severe enough to warrant assessment and civil penalties."
• Operation Out of Service Order (OOSO): "An order requiring the carrier to immediately cease all motor vehicle operations."

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Penalties Can Be Avoided If You Control What You Can Control

Certain aspects of the FMCSA's BASICs fall within your realm of control.

Ensuring driver fitness encompasses screening during the recruitment phase and fostering continuous development through targeted employee development initiatives.

Addressing unsafe driver behaviors can be achieved through structured programs such as LLLC Defensive Driving, complemented by continuous, self-guided learning opportunities like the A-Fleet.

The implementation of systematic procedures and the utilization of tools such as Whip Around or Samara are instrumental in the oversight of vehicle maintenance.

Furthermore, the attainment of credentials, including a Medical Certificate (Med Card) or Commercial Driver's License (CDL), can be efficiently managed through automated messaging and meticulous organization of Driver Qualification (DQ) files within platforms like A-Suite Comply.

For less money and time it would take to bring in outside assistance, you can automate your compliance so you can truly focus on safety, instead of busywork of managing files and paperwork.

DOT compliance software like A-Suite Comply can streamline the compliance process and give you greater focus on improving your safety culture.

Conclusion

FMCSRs are a crucial part of a motor carriers' operations. While tedious, they help ensure you won't get slapped with unnecessary fines and furthermore, will only help if you ever have an incident and the trial lawyers come knocking at your door for a lawsuit.

It is important for all parties involved to understand and comply with FMCSRs to maintain a safe and efficient transportation system in the United States.