Frequently Asked Questions
The Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) are questions and answers about Compliance,
Safety, Accountability (CSA) that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
(FMCSA) compiled to assist the public. As questions come in through the website,
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Describe the serious driver violations that are sometimes called Red Flag Violations.
Answer
When investigating a motor carrier, a Safety Investigator (SI) looks at driver history
for egregious violations of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs).
These violations are sometimes referred to as Red Flag Violations and are always
investigated as part of a carrier investigation. The SI conducting the investigation
looks to see if the violation has been corrected. At present, there are 16 such
violations, though this list may be updated periodically. These violations are outlined
in the table below, along with the Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories
(BASICs) to which they correspond.
|
BASIC
|
FMCSR Part
|
Violation Description
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
383.21
|
Operating a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) with more than one driver's license
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
383.23(a)(2)
|
Operating a CMV without a valid commercial driver's license (CDL)
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
383.51(a)
|
Driving a CMV (CDL) while disqualified
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
383.51A-SIN
|
Driving a CMV while CDL is suspended for a safety-related or unknown reason and
in the state of driver's license issuance
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
383.51A-SOUT
|
Driving a CMV while CDL is suspended for safety-related or unknown reason and outside
the driver's license state of issuance.
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
383.91(a)
|
Operating a CMV with improper CDL group
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
391.11
|
Unqualified driver
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
391.11(b)(5)
|
Driver lacking valid license for type of vehicle being operated
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
391.11(b)(7)
|
Driver disqualified from operating CMV
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
391.15(a)
|
Driving a CMV while disqualified
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
391.15A-SIN
|
Driving a CMV while disqualified. Suspended for safety-related or unknown reason
and in the state of driver’s license issuance.
|
|
Driver Fitness
|
391.15A-SOUT
|
Driving a CMV while disqualified. Suspended for a safety-related or unknown reason
and outside the driver's license state of issuance.
|
|
Controlled Substances/Alcohol
|
392.4(a)
|
Driver uses or is in possession of drugs
|
|
Controlled Substances/Alcohol
|
392.5(a)
|
Possession/use/under influence of alcohol less than 4 hours prior to duty
|
|
Fatigued Driving (HOS)
|
395.13(d)
|
Driving after being declared out-of-service (OOS)
|
|
Vehicle Maintenance
|
396.9(c)(2)
|
Operating an OOS vehicle
|
Any driver violations identified and addressed during carrier investigations that
are not corrected may result in a driver Notice of Violation or Notice of Claim.
(
link)