How to Read Your CSA Score as a Truck Driver
If you’ve been in the trucking industry for any amount of time, you’ve likely heard of your CSA score—but do you really understand what it means, how it’s calculated, and how it can affect your career?
Whether you’re a new CDL-A driver or a seasoned road warrior, understanding your CSA score is crucial to protecting your job, your pay, and your future in the industry.
🛑 What is a CSA Score?
CSA stands for Compliance, Safety, Accountability—a safety initiative run by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). It’s designed to track and evaluate the safety performance of motor carriers and individual commercial drivers.
Your CSA profile is based on roadside inspections, crash reports, and violations, and it can influence:
Your job eligibility
Your carrier’s insurance rates
Whether you’re selected for roadside inspections
And even if a shipper chooses your carrier for freight
📊 How the CSA Program Works
FMCSA organizes CSA violations into 7 BASICs, or Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories:
| BASIC | What It Covers |
|---|---|
| Unsafe Driving | Speeding, reckless driving, improper lane changes |
| Hours-of-Service (HOS) Compliance | Logbook violations, ELD issues |
| Driver Fitness | Medical cards, proper licensing |
| Controlled Substances/Alcohol | Drug and alcohol violations |
| Vehicle Maintenance | Brakes, tires, lights, leaks |
| Hazardous Materials Compliance | Loading/unloading hazmat, placarding |
| Crash Indicator | Involvement in DOT-recordable crashes |
🔍 Where to Find Your CSA Score
As a driver, you don’t have a public CSA score—but you do have a driver safety profile based on your inspections and violations. Your carrier’s CSA score, however, is public and available at:
👉 https://ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/SMS
To view your personal record, request your PSP (Pre-Employment Screening Program) report here: 👉 https://www.psp.fmcsa.dot.gov
This report includes:
5 years of crash data
3 years of inspection/violation history
⚠️ How Your Score Impacts You
Even though the CSA system is carrier-focused, violations tied to your CDL number follow you and may appear in your PSP report. Here’s how that can affect your career:
Insurance Risk: Higher CSA scores = higher insurance costs for carriers = less hiring interest
Job Disqualification: Some companies won’t hire drivers with certain BASIC violations
DOT Scrutiny: Carriers (and their drivers) with poor CSA scores get pulled in more often
📉 What Lowers Your CSA Score
FMCSA uses a point-based system. The worse the violation, the more points assigned. Points are weighted by time (recent violations hurt more).
| Violation | Points |
|---|---|
| Speeding 15+ mph over limit | 10 |
| Log falsification | 7 |
| Expired medical card | 5 |
| Inoperative brakes/lights | 6 |
| Failure to secure load | 10 |
Violations decay over 24 months, but repeated issues cause your score to spike—and you become a liability for carriers.
✅ Tips to Improve Your CSA/PSP Standing
Know Your Record – Pull your PSP annually and address errors
Perform Thorough Pre-Trips – Catch violations before inspectors do
Stay Compliant – ELDs, medical cards, and HOS rules must be followed to the letter
Challenge False Violations – Use the DataQs system to dispute incorrect inspections:
👉 https://dataqs.fmcsa.dot.govDrive Defensively – Avoid crashes and citations at all costs—especially preventable ones
📌 Final Word: Don’t Wait Until It’s Too Late
Carriers look at your PSP before they even speak to you. Insurance companies analyze CSA scores before writing policies. DOT officers pull CSA profiles before roadside stops.
If you’re not watching your CSA and PSP record—someone else is.
Make it a habit to check your reports annually, follow safety protocols every mile, and stay informed. A clean record isn’t just good for your reputation—it’s money in your pocket.
