HOW-TO Guide or understanding CSA scores, Compliance and Safety

As per the reports published in the third quarter of 2021, there were 284 million vehicles in the United States. The increasing number of trucks and motorists on the road poses an increased risk for accidents and injuries.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration or FMCSA is committed to keeping US roads safe, working to reduce the number of accidents, crashes, injuries, fatalities, etc. significantly. The drivers and carriers need to support FMCSA in their effort.

The FMCSA uses the CSA program to identify safety problems and create considerable interventions to enhance road safety. You must understand all about CSA. Here is what we detail here:

• What is a CSA program?
• What does the CSA score involve?
• What is the ideal CSA score?
• How to increase your CSA score?

And much more.

Let us begin with understanding the CSA score.

What Is the CSA Program?

The CSA program of FMCSA stands for maintaining Compliance, Safety, and Accountability. This program makes the motorists, truckers, owner-operators, etc., accountable for their safety.

Here are the top things to know about the CSA program:

• The FMCSA group assigns every carrier a percentile rank. CSA scores are CSA percentiles. 
• You can find the safety data online in the FMCSA’s Safety Measurement System or SMS. It keeps changing monthly as new data gets added after the roadside inspections.
• SMS data include seven Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, also known as the BASICs. It includes unsafe driving, vehicle maintenance, the fitness of the driver, etc.
• Drivers do not have their independent CSA scores. CSA scores are assigned to the carriers as per their DOT number.
• If the driver is involved in a violation, it is sent to the carrier and not the driver. However, the drivers have their Pre-employment Screening Program or PSP with the FMCSA.

PSP record

A PSP record has all the details about the driver’s past five-year crash and three-year roadside inspection history.

After completing pre-employment screening, all commercial drivers, carriers, and industry companies have PSP records.

What does a CSA Score involve?

It is interesting to know how the CSA scores are calculated. The two main things that go into the CSA score are:

• Roadside inspection
• Crash report data

This data is available in the Safety Measurement System or SMS.

Other factors include:

• Crash severity
• When did the event occur?
• The miles traveled by the vehicle in one year.

BASIC

The carriers get a CSA score for seven BASICs mentioned here:

Unsafe Driving: It means that the commercial vehicle is driven on the road with conditions like over-speeding, driving without a seatbelt, improper lane changing, etc.,

Crash Indicator: This one is based on state-reported crash data. It involves historical frequency and crashes involving seriousness.

HOS Compliance: This part means that the commercial vehicle was operated when the driver was sick or exhausted, and the records of duty status were not maintained for the last six months.

Vehicle Maintenance: As the name says, it means not maintaining the commercial vehicle leading to improper load security, faulty brakes, lights not working well, etc.

Controlled Substances or Alcohol: It is unfit to operate a commercial vehicle under the influence of substances such as alcohol and illegal drugs.

Hazardous Materials Compliance: It means that the hazardous materials were managed in an unsafe manner, like traveling with leaking containers, not labeling the hazardous materials, etc.

Driver Fitness: Lastly, it is essential for the commercial vehicle not to let the unfit driver operate the vehicle. Examples include not having valid CDL, not maintaining driver qualification files, etc.

How to check your score?

You can check your CSA score by typing your carrier’s name or DOT number. The BASIC information is also available to the public. However, you may not be able to view your Crash Indicator and Hazardous Materials Compliance details.

Even the additional safety data can be seen on the SMS. You will have to use your unique login and pin. If you do not have an FMCSA login, register for the portal online.

What is an ideal CSA score?

CSA scores range from 0 to 100 percentile, where 100 is the worst performance and zero is the best performance. Unfortunately, there is no definition of an ideal CSA score. There is no specific CSA that determines when the FMCSA will intervene. It is the resulting percentile ranking that matters.

The FMCSA uses thresholds to prioritize interventions:

• Carriers with more than 65% CSA scores in Unsafe Driving, Crash Indicator, and HOS Compliance will receive FMCSA investigations.
• The threshold for hazardous materials is lower, which is 60%.
• The threshold for passenger carriers is also low, at 50%.
• All other BASIC categories have an 80% threshold.
• BASIC violations are weightier compared to others.
• The more recent incidents are weighted more heavily. Violations and crashes undergo “normalized by exposure,” a calculation used by FMCSA to make a fair comparison between carriers with different activities.
• Carriers who record good CSA scores get lower insurance premium benefits. They are also subjected to fewer DOT audits and roadside inspections. They also have a better reputation, which means better operations and improved profitability.

How to improve CSA Score?

The good part is you can improve your CSA scores.

1. The first thing to do is to understand all BASIC categories. This way only you can attempt to increase compliance.
2. CSA scores are calculated based on your drivers’ performance in roadside inspection and crash reports. So, hire drivers who offer a good safety record.
3. During the hiring process, ensure to review their PSP records. Using PSP reports can lower your crash rate by 8% and out-of-service driver rates by 17%, as per FMCSA data.
4. One of the best ways to improve your CSA score is to schedule a driver training program.
5. Keep reviewing the harsh driving incidents of your driver
6. Analyze things like harsh braking, acceleration, tailgating, etc., to address problematic patterns.
7. Undertake a maintenance program to keep your fleet running smoothly and improve your CSA.

The best way to maintain your CSA score is by running a safer and more compliant business. Make an effort to reduce ELD compliance violations, prevent accidents by hiring only good PSP drivers, and conduct frequent vehicle inspections.