Higher is worse relative performance
A percentile nearer 100 represents worse relative performance within that BASIC’s comparison group. It is not a percentage likelihood of a crash.
Carrier-safety interpretation resource
CSA Score Lookup: FMCSA Safety Rating vs BASIC Percentile
Separate the official rating from SMS prioritization, roadside inspection outcomes, crash involvement, and private scoring before relying on a carrier record.
USDOTData does not assign federal safety ratings.
No single metric proves that a carrier is safe, unsafe, suitable, or legally authorized for a specific job. Preserve the source and check time. This page is informational, not a fitness determination.
Five records answer five different questions
A carrier page can show several safety fields together. Their proximity does not make them interchangeable.
| Record | What it answers | What it is not |
|---|---|---|
| FMCSA safety rating | Result of a qualifying onsite investigation | A continuously recalculated score |
| SMS BASIC percentile | Relative performance used to prioritize interventions | A federal safety-fitness rating |
| Out-of-service rate | Roadside inspection outcomes in one category | A complete carrier verdict |
| Crash count or indicator | Reportable crash involvement in a period | Proof of fault or preventability |
| Third-party score | A provider’s model and cutoff | An FMCSA-generated or endorsed score |
Investigation-based
The official FMCSA safety rating
FMCSA may issue a safety rating after a qualifying onsite investigation under 49 CFR Part 385. The public rating is tied to that rating action, rather than recalculated each time a roadside event arrives.
- Satisfactory
- The investigation found safety controls sufficient to meet the safety-fitness standard.
- Conditional
- Safety controls were inadequate but had not yet resulted in violation of the safety-fitness standard.
- Unsatisfactory
- Safety controls were inadequate and resulted in violations of the standard; final adverse ratings have operating consequences under the rule.
Prioritization—not a rating
How to read an SMS BASIC percentile
SMS organizes current data into seven Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories. When enough data exists, FMCSA compares the carrier with others in a similar safety-event group and assigns a 0–100 percentile.
Threshold means intervention priority
Crossing an intervention threshold can prioritize the carrier for FMCSA attention. It does not convert the percentile into Conditional or Unsatisfactory.
The denominator matters
Event group, inspection count, exposure, violations, time weights, and the data snapshot are needed to interpret the percentile. A rank without context is incomplete.
FMCSA says SMS results update monthly after a snapshot and validation period. Preserve the displayed snapshot date; a newly corrected record may not appear immediately.
Out-of-service and crash fields need denominators
Out-of-service rate
Read the driver, vehicle, and hazardous-material categories separately. Keep the number of relevant inspections, number placed out of service, timeframe, data date, and comparison source with the percentage.
A small denominator can move sharply. National averages provide context, not a pass/fail threshold or proof of fitness.
Crash involvement
A public crash count reports qualifying involvement during its displayed period. The count alone does not determine fault, causation, preventability, exposure-adjusted risk, or whether events are equally severe.
Match the carrier, time window, severity fields, and source date. Review any available preventability determination or DataQs correction separately.
FMCSA distinction
A third-party “score” is a private model
FMCSA’s current factsheet distinguishes BASIC percentiles and safety ratings from “scores” and says scores are not generated or endorsed by the agency. A private score can still support a documented workflow, but only when its inputs, weights, missing-data rules, cutoff, version, and observation time are understood.
Read the official safety-ratings factsheetPreserve each source’s clock
SAFER Company Snapshot
SAFER says most Snapshot fields update daily, while inspection and crash counts update weekly. It provides the current safety rating if any, OOS summaries, and crash information.
Check official update ratesSafety Measurement System
SMS updates monthly after a scheduled snapshot and validation period. Its BASIC measures and percentiles answer a different question from the current SAFER rating.
Review the official SMS measure guideOfficial lookup workflow
Look up a CSA record without misidentifying the carrier
1. Resolve the USDOT number
Search USDOTData or SAFER using the known identifier and confirm the legal name, DBA, address, and operating status. Do not choose by a similar company name alone.
2. Open official SMS
Use the exact USDOT number in FMCSA’s Safety Measurement System. Record the SMS snapshot month and whether each BASIC is public, available, or absent.
3. Read each BASIC separately
Capture the measure, percentile when displayed, inspection or violation context, safety-event group, and intervention status. Never combine seven BASICs into one FMCSA score.
4. Cross-check the current record
Use SAFER for the current safety rating, inspection and crash summaries, and status fields; use DataQs or the stated correction path for disputed source data.
A defensible carrier-safety review
1. Match the exact carrier
Use the USDOT number plus legal/DBA name and address. Similar names, affiliates, and former identities can point to different records.
2. Name the record
Write down whether the field is a safety rating, BASIC percentile, OOS rate, crash count, investigation result, order, or third-party score.
3. Preserve the date and denominator
Keep the source, snapshot or update date, observation time, category, count, denominator, and displayed period.
4. Read the primary detail
Open SAFER and SMS details instead of relying on a copied badge. Review the inspection, crash, violation, investigation, and authority context available.
5. Separate legal status from risk context
Authority, insurance, operating orders, safety rating, SMS prioritization, OOS rates, and crashes each require their own check.
6. Document the decision rule
If a private threshold is used, record its business purpose, evidence, exceptions, reviewer, version, and recheck trigger.
Put the metrics back into carrier context
Review the matched carrier, current federal sources, inspection denominators, crash period, and other registration records together—then preserve what was known when the decision was made.
FMCSA safety rating questions
What are the FMCSA safety ratings?
FMCSA may issue Satisfactory, Conditional, or Unsatisfactory after a qualifying onsite investigation under 49 CFR Part 385. The rating reflects the most recent rating action, not every new inspection or crash.
Is a BASIC percentile an FMCSA safety rating?
No. FMCSA uses SMS BASIC percentiles to compare carriers within similar safety-event groups and prioritize interventions. The agency says they are not federal safety-fitness ratings.
Does “Not Rated” mean a carrier is satisfactory?
No. It means the current public record does not show one of the three federal rating labels. Review inspections, out-of-service rates, crashes, SMS, investigations, authority, and operating orders as separate evidence.
Does FMCSA issue carrier safety scores?
FMCSA’s current safety-rating factsheet says “scores” are not generated or endorsed by the agency. Third-party scores use private inputs and methods and should be traced back to current primary records.
How do I look up a carrier CSA score?
Match the carrier by USDOT number, open the official FMCSA Safety Measurement System, note the snapshot date, and review each available BASIC separately. Some measures or percentiles may be unavailable or non-public; do not replace missing official data with an invented zero.
Related carrier compliance resources
Connect the carrier identity, safety program, inspection, crash, and out-of-service context before making a decision.
- Review DOT medical card requirementsSeparate medical qualification, CDL self-certification, State rules, and proof.
- Use the FMCSA ClearinghouseChoose the correct employer, driver, or service-agent workflow.
- Prepare for a New Entrant auditReview evidence, timing, and automatic-failure risk areas.
- Compare DOT inspection levelsPrepare for Levels I–VIII and close the report loop correctly.
- Close the DVIR workflowHandle no-defect days, reported defects, repairs, and roadside records.
- Apply hours-of-service rulesCompare property and passenger clocks, breaks, sleeper splits, and exceptions.
- Check ELD requirements and exemptionsStart with the records-of-duty-status trigger, then test each narrow exception.
- Explore carrier crash dataReview public crash trends with carrier and period context.
- Compare national OOS averagesPut driver, vehicle, and hazmat OOS rates in historical context.