Compliance
New entrant safety audit: when it happens and what fails it
Updated
FMCSA runs a safety audit within 12 months after a new carrier starts operating, inside an 18-month monitoring period. There are 16 violations that fail the audit automatically. A property carrier that fails gets 60 days from the failure notice to fix the problems.
At a glance
- When
- Within 12 months after operations begin
- Monitoring period
- 18 months
- Automatic failures
- 16 listed violations
- Result notice
- No later than 45 days after the audit
- Time to fix a failure
- 60 days for property carriers
When the audit happens
FMCSA describes the audit as happening within 12 months after you start operating. It sits inside an 18-month new entrant monitoring period, and passing the audit doesn't end that period early. The auditor can review your records on site or remotely.
The 12 months is FMCSA's program timeline. It doesn't set your exact audit date, so keep your records ready from the start.
What the auditor checks
- Driver qualification files
- Drug and alcohol testing controls
- Hours of service records
- Vehicle inspection and maintenance records
- Insurance
- How you manage safety overall
Records to keep from your first load
The audit areas tell you what to keep from day one:
- A driver qualification file for each driver.
- Enrollment in a drug and alcohol testing program with random testing, if your trucks need a CDL. Owner-operators join a consortium pool. See Clearinghouse.
- Hours of service records.
- Maintenance records and periodic inspection reports for each truck.
- Proof your insurance is on file.
Keep driver and maintenance files organized from the start, before anyone asks for them.
The 16 violations that fail you automatically
Most of these fail the audit on a single occurrence. Two need a pattern: missing duty status records and missing periodic inspections fail you when 51% or more of the records checked are missing.
| Area | Violation | Section (49 CFR) |
|---|---|---|
| Drug and alcohol | No drug and alcohol testing program | 382.115 |
| Drug and alcohol | Using a driver with an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or higher | 382.201 |
| Drug and alcohol | Using a driver who refused a test | 382.211 |
| Drug and alcohol | Using a driver who tested positive for drugs | 382.215 |
| Drug and alcohol | No random testing program | 382.305 |
| Licensing | Knowingly using a driver without a valid CDL | 383.3(a) and 383.23(a) |
| Licensing | Knowingly letting a driver with a disqualified CDL or CLP drive | 383.37(b) |
| Licensing | Knowingly using a disqualified driver to operate a CMV | 383.51(a) |
| Driver qualification | Knowingly using a disqualified driver | 391.15(a) |
| Driver qualification | Knowingly using a physically unqualified driver | 391.11(b)(4) |
| Insurance | No required insurance for property carriage | 387.7(a) |
| Insurance | No required insurance for passenger carriage | 387.31(a) |
| Hours of service | No duty status records, in 51% or more of records checked | 395.8(a) |
| Vehicles | Running a vehicle placed out of service before it's repaired | 396.9(c)(2) |
| Vehicles | Leaving out-of-service defects on a driver vehicle inspection report uncorrected | 396.11(a)(3) |
| Vehicles | No periodic inspection, in 51% or more of records checked | 396.17(a) |
After the audit
FMCSA sends a written pass or fail notice no later than 45 days after it finishes the audit.
If you fail, you have 60 days from the failure notice to correct the problems. Certain passenger carriers and new entrants hauling placardable hazmat get 45 days. Follow the date in your notice.
If the problems aren't fixed in time, your registration is revoked and you're placed out of service. You can reapply no earlier than 30 days after revocation, with the problems corrected, and a new 18-month monitoring period starts.
If you think the audit got something wrong, you can ask the FMCSA Field Administrator for an administrative review, generally within 90 days of the notice. To get a decision before out-of-service consequences start, ask within 15 days of the first failure notice. A request doesn't pause anything on its own.
See out-of-service orders for the other review paths.
Fake audit requests
FMCSA's fraud alerts page describes fake safety audit requests that ask for your PIN, EIN or Social Security number. Someone with those details can take over your FMCSA account.
Check any audit request with FMCSA directly before you send anything. See fake notices.
Track your first year. Enter your DOT number to see your authority dates, pulled from the latest FMCSA data. Check your status
Frequently asked questions
When does the new entrant safety audit happen?
FMCSA puts it within 12 months after you start operating, inside an 18-month monitoring period. The 12 months doesn't set your exact audit date.
What fails a new entrant audit automatically?
Any of the 16 listed violations, such as having no drug and alcohol testing program, no random testing or no required insurance. Most of them fail you on a single occurrence.
What happens if I fail the audit?
A property carrier gets 60 days from the failure notice to correct the problems. If they aren't fixed in time, your registration is revoked and you're placed out of service.
Can I appeal a failed new entrant audit?
You can ask the FMCSA Field Administrator for an administrative review, generally within 90 days of the notice. Ask within 15 days of the first failure notice to get a decision before out-of-service consequences start.