Do You Know Your Company’s DOT Safety Score?

In December of 2010, the U.S. DOT launched the public availability of its new truck safety measurement system and some companies are finding some unpleasant surprises.

This new enforcement tool referred to as CSA http://csa.fmcsa.dot.gov/default.aspx for Compliance, Safety, Accountability, changes the way the government assesses the on-the-road performance of any company falling within DOT’s oversight. While it’s still too early to know the impact and effectiveness of the new system, it is apparent that the CSA system is capturing a great deal more operating information about companies, including the activities of their drivers.

The centerpiece of CSA is the Safety Measurement System (SMS), which analyzes all safety-based violations from inspections and crash data to determine a commercial motor carrier’s on-road performance. The SMS uses seven safety improvement categories called BASICs to examine a carrier’s on-road performance and potential crash risk. The BASICs are Unsafe Driving, Fatigued Driving (Hours-of-Service), Driver Fitness, Controlled Substances/Alcohol, Vehicle Maintenance, Cargo-Related and Crash Indicator.

All of this data, in turn, is impacting companies’ safety scores posted on the government’s websites. Don’t be surprised if owners and insurance carriers start utilizing these scores as a prequalification tool in the near future. Check your safety assessment now at: http://ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/sms.