HOWES OIL CO INC
Risk factors
Low riskVioCodes scoreA weighted read of the public FMCSA signals below — authority, insurance, out-of-service, crashes, roadside OOS rates, and carrier connections. A starting point for vetting, not a guarantee.
Roadside inspection performance
Out-of-service rate vs national average. Lower is better.
CSA performance breakdown
FMCSA · Sep 202631 inspections · 28 violations (3 OOS) · 7% of inspections had an OOS finding.
Violations by BASIC
click to filter codes
Top cited codes
score = count × severity weight
- 1396.17C-PIVehicle Maintenance
Operating a CMV without documentation of a periodic inspection
16
4× · sev 4
- 2393.9A-LBLVehicle Maintenance
Lighting - Backup lamp inoperative
6
1× · sev 6
- 3393.9A-LTSIVehicle Maintenance1 OOS
Lighting - Turn signal - Any inoperative on the rearmost vehicle.
6
1× · sev 6
- 4393.9A-LRLIVehicle Maintenance
Lighting - Tail lamp - Any inoperative
6
1× · sev 6
- 5392.2-DMOVEUnsafe Driving
Driver - Move over/slow law - Failure to yield right of way to authorized emergency vehicles
5
1× · sev 5
- 6172.504A-HMPSHazardous Materials Compliance
HM (Placarding) - Bulk package/freight container/unit load device/transport vehicle not placarded as required.
5
1× · sev 5
- 7393.43D-BVehicle Maintenance1 OOS
Brake - Missing or inoperable breakaway braking system on a trailer(s) or converter dolly
4
1× · sev 4
- 8392.2-SLLSR
State/Local Laws - State registration/tag violation
2
2×
- 9392.2-SLLEWA1
State/Local Laws - Excessive weight - 1-2500 lbs over on an axle/axle groups
2
2×
- 10392.2-SLLEWA2
State/Local Laws - Excessive weight - 2501-5000 lbs over on an axle/axle groups
1
1×
Most inspected in · top 3 states
- SD28
- MN1
- ND1
Latest FMCSA SMS snapshot. Codes link to the lookup — severity weighting, contest angles, and the DataQs Drafter for each. Click a BASIC to filter the codes.
Safety trends & next-run projection
Where each BASIC sits today, how it ranks against peers, and where it’s heading at the next monthly SMS run.
FMCSA keeps the Crash Indicator percentile private, and its measure needs a power-unit history public data doesn’t expose — so it can’t be estimated yet. VioCodes now records power units monthly, so a calibrated Crash estimate should light up over time. These are the public crash facts (all state-reportable crashes count, regardless of fault).
“Projected” estimates the next monthly SMS run from inspections on record now. FMCSA marks the BASIC percentile itself “Not Public,” so the percentile shown is a VioCodes estimate of how the carrier ranks against its peers, presented as a likely range (shaded on the gauge) and calibrated against real carriers. Crash Indicator has no public estimate — FMCSA keeps its measures fully private. Estimates, not official FMCSA figures. Not affiliated with FMCSA.
Recommendations
What’s driving each score, what to do about it, and where it could go.
A high share of violations are occurring in Rock County, MN
Medium impact5 of 14 violations in the last 12 months (36%) came from inspections in Rock County, MN. That can mean tougher enforcement there or simply more of your miles run through it — either way it's worth a look.
- Review the inspections from Rock County, MN to spot recurring issues
- Brief drivers running that lane; consider rerouting around the toughest enforcement corridors where practical
Hours-of-Service Compliance needs attention
Low impactEstimated Hours-of-Service Compliance percentile of 0% is under the 60% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.
- Review recent inspections with violations in this BASIC and take remedial action with drivers/equipment
Driver Fitness needs attention
Low impactEstimated Driver Fitness percentile of 0% is under the 75% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.
- Review recent inspections with violations in this BASIC and take remedial action with drivers/equipment
Controlled Substances/Alcohol needs attention
Low impactEstimated Controlled Substances/Alcohol percentile of 0% is under the 75% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.
- Review recent inspections with violations in this BASIC and take remedial action with drivers/equipment
Lighting / lamps violations are the leading contributor to Vehicle Maintenance
Low impactEstimated Vehicle Maintenance percentile of 33% is under the 75% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.
- 393.9A-LTSILighting - Turn signal - Any inoperative on the rearmost vehicle.1× · 11%
- 393.9A-LRLILighting - Tail lamp - Any inoperative1× · 8%
- 393.9A-LSLILighting - Stop lamps - Any inoperative.1× · 8%
- 396.17C-PIOperating a CMV without documentation of a periodic inspection4× · 26%
- Walk the lights every pre-trip and carry spare bulbs/fuses; clean lenses and check the trailer plug
- Prioritize the out-of-service items — they carry the heaviest weight
Recommendations are generated from the carrier’s public FMCSA roadside-inspection record. Percentiles and projections are VioCodes estimates, not official FMCSA figures. Informational, not legal advice.
90-day safety improvement plan
What this carrier has struggled with most in the last 90 days — where to focus now.
- 392.2-SLLIRPState/Local Laws - IRP apportioned tag or registration violation
- 392.2-SLLEWA1State/Local Laws - Excessive weight - 1-2500 lbs over on an axle/axle groups
- Review these violations with drivers and add the fix to your pre-trip and PM routine
Based on roadside inspections in the last 90 days, ranked by what recurs most. Informational, not legal advice.
Inspection & crash map
live · FMCSA MCMISEvery inspection and crash on record — hover a point for the summary, click for full detail (codes, severity, CSA points).
CSA points = violation severity weight × FMCSA time weight (3× in the last 6 months, 2× at 6–12, 1× at 12–24). Points are spread within each state — FMCSA records the inspection state, not an exact location. Source: FMCSA MCMIS.
Equipment
VINs via NHTSA35 distinct vehicles seen in this carrier’s roadside inspections.
+ 5 more.
Equipment is inferred from VINs recorded on roadside inspections (FMCSA MCMIS), decoded via the NHTSA vPIC API — it reflects vehicles inspected, not a current fleet roster.
Company profile
FMCSA censusAUTHORIZED FOR HIRE
- Interstate · 100+ mi13 drivers
- Interstate · <100 mi4 drivers
- Intrastate · <100 mi3 drivers
- Company officer
- MIKE HOWES
- Operation
- Interstate
- D-U-N-S
- 24374761
- Registered since
- 1974-06-01
- Last MCS-150 update
- 2024-07-30
- Census status
- Active
Fleet: 16 trucks · 4 owned tractors · 12 leased/term tractors.
Source: FMCSA Company Census File (data.transportation.gov). Fleet and driver counts are self-reported on the carrier’s most recent MCS-150 filing.
Connections
carrier graphThis carrier shares VINs, addresses or phone numbers with 4 other carriers — review the connections below as part of your vetting.
Shared VINs come from FMCSA roadside-inspection records — a vehicle inspected under more than one carrier, often a fleet transfer or trailer interchange. Other links come from the FMCSA census. Shared identifiers are common and often legitimate — treat these as leads to investigate, not proof of wrongdoing.
Activity history
8 events- 07/30/2024MCS-150 update filed
0.9M mi reported (2023)
- 04/01/2012Insurance filed — ZURICH AMERICAN INSURANCE COMPANY
Liability (BIPD) — BMC-91X · policy BAP3486537
- 04/01/2012Insurance replaced — FEDERATED MUTUAL INSURANCE CO.
BIPD/Primary · policy 915927
- 03/20/1997Insurance cancelled — FARMLAND MUTUAL INSURANCE CO.
BIPD · policy CMG 045237
- 01/01/1997Insurance filed — Federated Mutual Insurance Company
Cargo — BMC-34 · policy 915927
- 01/01/1997Insurance replaced — FARMLAND MUTUAL INSURANCE CO.
BIPD · policy CMG 045237
- 11/29/1984MOTOR PROPERTY CONTRACT CARRIER — GRANTED
- 06/01/1974Registered with FMCSA
AUTHORIZED FOR HIRE
Merged from FMCSA authority, insurance, out-of-service, and census records.
Operations
Classification
- AUTHORIZED FOR HIRE
Area served
- Interstate
FMCSA safety rating
- Rating
- Satisfactory
- Type
- —
- Rated
- 2006-12-06
- Last review
- 2006-09-18
MCS-150 registration
- Form date
- 2024-07-30
- Reported mileage
- 950,000 mi (2023)
Changes on file
FMCSA census historyJanuary, 2021
First on-record entry — HOWES OIL CO INC, SIOUX FALLS, SD
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