Interstate Carrier ResourcesDOT Audit: What a Compliance Review Checks, and How FMCSA Sets Your Safety Rating
Reviewed by Austin Park, founder of ICR Filings · Updated October 31, 2026
- A "DOT audit" usually means a safety audit for new carriers or a compliance review for established ones.
- A compliance review can produce a safety rating. A new entrant safety audit does not.
- Ratings come from six factors: general, driver, operational, vehicle, hazardous materials, and accidents.
- A final unsatisfactory rating leads to an out-of-service order, but you have 45 or 60 days from a proposed rating to act.
"DOT audit" is what most people call it, but FMCSA uses more specific terms, and the difference matters. One of them can put a safety rating on your record.
Safety audit vs compliance review
| Safety audit | Compliance review | |
|---|---|---|
| Who | New carriers, under the New Entrant program | Motor carriers generally |
| Purpose | Education, and checking basic safety management controls | Deciding whether you meet the safety fitness standard |
| Safety rating? | No | Can produce one |
New carrier? Read our new entrant safety audit guide instead, since it has its own rules and deadlines.
What FMCSA looks at
Under 49 CFR 385.3, a compliance review examines your operations, such as hours of service, maintenance and inspection, driver qualification, CDL requirements, financial responsibility, accidents, hazardous materials, and other safety and transportation records.
The six rating factors
Appendix B to Part 385 sets out how a rating is calculated:
| Factor | What it covers |
|---|---|
| 1. General | Parts 387 and 390, including financial responsibility |
| 2. Driver | Parts 382, 383 and 391: testing, CDLs and driver qualification |
| 3. Operational | Parts 392 and 395: driving rules and hours of service |
| 4. Vehicle | Parts 393 and 396: equipment, inspection and maintenance |
| 5. Hazardous materials | Parts 397, 171, 177 and 180 |
| 6. Accident | Your recordable accident rate |
How violations turn into a rating
FMCSA looks at violations of regulations it lists as acute or critical. An acute violation is serious enough to need immediate correction. Critical violations point to a breakdown in your management controls, and they count when there is a pattern, meaning more than one violation.
Each acute violation or pattern of critical violations is one point in its factor. A pattern under Part 395, hours of service, is two points. Then each factor is rated:
- Satisfactory: 0 points
- Conditional: 1 point
- Unsatisfactory: 2 or more points
Vehicle inspections and accidents can also feed in where the appendix calls for it. The factor ratings are then combined into your overall rating under the table in Appendix B.
What the ratings mean
- Satisfactory: adequate safety management controls are in place and working.
- Conditional: controls are not adequate, which could lead to problems.
- Unsatisfactory: controls are not adequate, and that has already led to problems.
- Unrated: FMCSA has not assigned a rating.
The timeline after a review
- Within 30 daysFMCSA sends written notice of the rating, with a list of deficiencies to correct.
- 45 daysA proposed rating becomes final for passenger carriers and placardable hazmat.
- 60 daysA proposed rating becomes final for all other carriers.
- Day 46 or 61A carrier with a final unsatisfactory rating cannot operate, and FMCSA issues an out-of-service order.
A satisfactory rating, or one that improves on a previous unsatisfactory, is final on the date of the notice. If FMCSA decides a non-hazmat, non-passenger carrier is making a good-faith effort to improve, it may allow more time to operate (49 CFR 385.13).
Your options
- Administrative review: you can ask FMCSA to review a proposed or final rating if you think it got something wrong (49 CFR 385.15). Time limits apply, so read the section and your notice.
- Corrective action: if you have fixed the problems, you can ask for a rating change in writing, with evidence, at any time (49 CFR 385.17).
- Get help: if your rating or an out-of-service order is at stake, talk to a transportation attorney or safety consultant. We handle registration filings, not safety reviews.
Keep your registration clean too
Financial responsibility is part of Factor 1, and a review is a bad time to find a problem on your record. Start with your Company Snapshot, and if something is wrong, DataQs is how you challenge inspection and crash data. A Compliance Check looks over your filings.
Common questions
What do they look at in a DOT audit?
A compliance review examines operations such as drivers' hours of service, maintenance and inspection, driver qualification, CDL requirements, financial responsibility, accidents, hazardous materials, and other safety and transportation records.
How long does FMCSA take to send a rating after a review?
FMCSA must send written notice as soon as practicable, and no later than 30 days after the review.
What happens if I get an unsatisfactory rating?
A proposed unsatisfactory rating becomes final after 45 days for passenger and placardable hazmat carriers and 60 days for others. FMCSA then issues an out-of-service order. You can ask for an administrative review or for a rating change based on corrective actions.
Can I change a conditional rating?
Yes. A carrier that has corrected the deficiencies can ask for a rating change at any time, in writing, to the FMCSA Service Center for its area, with evidence of what it fixed.
Where can I see a carrier's safety rating?
On FMCSA's SAFER system at safer.fmcsa.dot.gov. See our guide to reading the Company Snapshot.
Official sources
- 49 CFR 385.3: definitions (compliance review, safety audit, safety ratings)
- 49 CFR Part 385, Appendix B: how safety ratings are determined
- 49 CFR 385.11: notification of safety fitness determination
- 49 CFR 385.13: unsatisfactory rated carriers and out-of-service orders
- 49 CFR 385.15: administrative review
- 49 CFR 385.17: change to safety rating based on corrective actions
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules and fees change, so confirm with the official source before you file.
Related guides
- Indiana Base Plate Migration: Moving Truck Registration From the BMV to DOR Motor Carrier Services
- Michigan CVED Authority Renewal: The CAP Portal, the December 1 Window, and Who Has to Renew
- Which Trucking Filings Do I Need? A Plain Checklist for 2026
Want us to handle it?
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See Compliance Check