Short answer: there is no single FMCSA “CSA score,” and FMCSA does not publish an insurance-rate formula. Compliance, Safety, Accountability is FMCSA's safety compliance and enforcement program. Its Safety Measurement System, or SMS, calculates separate measures and, when data is sufficient, percentile ranks within Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, or BASICs. An insurer may review available safety information under its own lawful underwriting and rating rules, but the effect—if any—is insurer- and risk-specific.
FMCSA expressly says that “scores” are not generated or endorsed by the agency. Third parties may create their own scores, but those products are not the same as an SMS BASIC measure, BASIC percentile, intervention status, or safety rating. Ask anyone using the word score to identify the exact data and method.
SMS is an enforcement workload-prioritization tool. A BASIC percentile does not set an insurance rate and does not change a carrier's safety rating. Safety ratings are issued under the separate process in 49 CFR Part 385 after an onsite investigation.
FMCSA's current SMS methodology organizes data into seven BASICs:
SMS uses roadside inspection data, state-reported crash records, and Acute and Critical Violations from investigations. Motor-carrier census information, including power units and vehicle miles traveled, is used for identification and for some normalization calculations.
A BASIC measure reflects the carrier's performance under the formula for that BASIC. When data-sufficiency rules are met, SMS groups carriers with a similar number of safety events and assigns percentile ranks from 0 to 100. FMCSA states that a higher percentile represents worse relative performance. A percentile is therefore relative to the comparison group and can change even when the carrier has no new event.
Do not combine BASICs into one number. Severity weights are assigned on a scale from 1 to 10 within each BASIC, and FMCSA cautions that equal-looking weights in different BASICs are not equivalent and should not be added or compared across categories.
SMS generally uses on-road safety events from the prior 24 months. Applicable violations or inspections in the most recent six months receive a time weight of 3; those over six through 12 months receive 2; and those over 12 through 24 months receive 1. Events older than 24 months are no longer used to assess the carrier's safety posture in SMS.
This is not a guaranteed insurance-pricing schedule. An insurer can use different lawful lookback periods for claims, driving records, or other underwriting information, and a policy renewal does not have to follow the SMS time-weight formula.
FMCSA's CSA FAQ describes five public BASIC percentile ranks: Unsafe Driving, Hours-of-Service Compliance, Controlled Substances/Alcohol, Driver Fitness, and Vehicle Maintenance. Crash Indicator and Hazardous Materials Compliance are nonpublic. A logged-in motor carrier can review those two additional percentiles and privacy-sensitive details in its own profile.
FMCSA's June 2026 methodology also notes statutory restrictions on public display of property-carrier SMS results. Public access can therefore differ by carrier type and current display rules. An insurer may ask the applicant for information that is not visible on an unauthenticated public page. The carrier should review its logged-in profile rather than assuming the public view is complete.
SMS uses BASIC percentiles and certain investigation results to prioritize carriers for possible FMCSA interventions. An intervention threshold is an enforcement-prioritization threshold, not an insurance surcharge and not a federal safety-fitness rating. A carrier can have a Satisfactory safety rating while a BASIC is prioritized because the two systems answer different questions and can reflect different dates.
Likewise, no percentile below a threshold guarantees that an insurer will offer coverage or a particular rate. Insurance underwriting may consider claims, drivers, equipment, commodities, radius, contracts, policy limits, and other lawful factors beyond SMS.
DataQs permits users to request and track review of data they believe is incomplete or incorrect. It is not a general appeal of accurate inspection data and does not guarantee a change.
FMCSA's current Crash Preventability Determination Program reviews 21 specific crash types. For an eligible crash, a carrier may submit a Request for Data Review with the required police accident report and supporting documents, photos, or video through DataQs.
A crash determined Not Preventable is excluded from the Crash Indicator BASIC measure and percentile calculation but remains displayed separately. The determination does not establish legal liability, fault, or negligence and does not decide insurance coverage. The absence of a Not Preventable determination does not itself mean a crash was preventable.
Do not seek extra inspections, alter routes, or pass inspection facilities to manufacture “clean inspection volume.” Operate lawfully and focus on the safety controls behind the data.
Provide the underwriter with accurate SMS information, currently valued loss runs when requested, driver and vehicle schedules, operation details, and documentation of corrective action. Separate a pending DataQs request from a completed correction. A written explanation can add context, but it does not require an insurer to change eligibility or premium.
When comparing quotes, hold limits, deductibles, drivers, vehicles, commodities, radius, and filings constant. There is no supportable fixed percentage increase for a BASIC percentile or fixed discount for moving below an intervention threshold.
What is a good CSA score?
FMCSA does not produce one CSA score. Review each BASIC measure, percentile, intervention status, inspection and crash record, and the separate safety rating.
Can an insurer see nonpublic SMS data?
Public users do not see the carrier's complete logged-in profile. An insurer may request data or authorization from the applicant. Read the request and any consent before providing access.
Does a DataQs filing pause an insurance decision?
No federal rule requires an insurer to wait. Describe the item as pending and provide the final result when issued.
Review Truscott's commercial truck insurance guide and submit the commercial trucking application with accurate safety, driver, vehicle, and loss information. A quote request does not bind coverage or guarantee eligibility, price, or savings.
Reviewed August 17, 2026. This article provides general information, not legal, tax, safety-compliance, or insurance advice. Requirements, methodology, and display rules can change. Eligibility, premium, discounts, deductibles, financing, and policy terms vary by insurer and risk. A quote request is not an offer, binder, or guarantee of coverage, price, savings, or authority activation. Current law, filed forms, and the issued policy control.
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