Automatic-Failure Self-Check
49 CFR 385.321 (table of violations resulting in automatic failure)
The regulation lists specific violations that cause a new entrant to fail the safety audit automatically, regardless of everything else. Most are a missing program or a missing record, not a crash. Work through this list before the audit; every 'no' is a problem to fix first. Check the current table in 385.321 - FMCSA amends it from time to time.
Drug and alcohol program
- Is there an alcohol and controlled-substances testing program in place for every CDL driver (382.115)? Yes / No
- Is every driver enrolled in a random testing program through a consortium, with selections actually being made (382.305)? Yes / No
- Has any driver been used after a refusal, a positive test, or an alcohol result of 0.04 or greater without completing the return-to-duty process (382.201, 382.211, 382.215, 382.503)? Yes / No
Drivers and licensing
- Does every driver of a vehicle requiring a CDL hold a valid CDL of the right class with the right endorsements (383.23)? Yes / No
- Has any driver been used whose license is suspended, revoked or canceled, or who is disqualified (383.37, 383.51, 391.15)? Yes / No
- Is every driver medically qualified with a current certificate (391.11(b)(4), 391.45)? Yes / No
Insurance
- Is the required minimum financial responsibility in force with an MCS-90 endorsement (387.7)? Yes / No
Hours of service
- Does every driver required to keep records of duty status actually keep them, on a registered ELD where required (395.8(a))? Yes / No (automatic failure when 51 percent or more of the records examined are missing)
Vehicles
- Has any vehicle been operated after being placed out of service, before repairs were made (396.9(c)(2))? Yes / No
- Has any vehicle been operated with a defect on a driver vehicle inspection report that was not repaired and certified (396.11(a)(3))? Yes / No
- Has every vehicle, including trailers, passed a periodic inspection in the past 12 months (396.17(a))? Yes / No (automatic failure when 51 percent or more of the vehicles examined lack one)
Result
Every item answered in the safe direction on ____________ by ______________________________. Items needing action, and the date corrected: ______________________________
Not automatic, but checked closely
- Pre-employment controlled-substances test with a negative result before the first day of driving (382.301).
- No false records of duty status (395.8(e)) and no driving after an hours-of-service out-of-service order (395.13).
- Every driver file, maintenance file and hours-of-service supporting document in the other tabs - the audit scores these even though a single gap is not an automatic failure.
Beyond the automatic failures
Passing means more than avoiding these. The auditor also scores the qualification files, maintenance files, hours-of-service supporting documents and the accident register in the other tabs, and a carrier that fails is given a corrective action plan and a deadline. The bigger risk in practice is not answering the audit request at all - FMCSA issues thousands of out-of-service orders a year to new entrants who simply did not respond. Answer every request by its deadline, even to say a record is blank.