CSA
Authorized · PropertyUSDOT 1961791· MC754915· CARRIER· EIN 20-4580011
⬇ PDF report

SARA TRANS EXPRESS INC

1780 NORTH HERCULES AVENUE, CLEARWATER, FL, 33765(727) 400-6929saratransusa@yahoo.comERMIN KURTOVIC
Vetting snapshot
Authority
Active
operating authority
Insurance
$750K BIPD
NORTHLAND INSURANCE COMPANY
Vehicle OOS
25%
above 22% national avg
Driver OOS
0%
below 6.7% national avg
Crashes 24mo
0
clean
Red flags
None
nothing flagged
100
/ 100

Risk factors

Low riskVioCodes score
No red flags in the public FMCSA record

A 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.

Authority & insurance

MC754915

Operating authority and insurance on file — from FMCSA Licensing & Insurance (L&I).

Common
Active
Contract
None
Broker
None
Authorized for: Property
Liability (BIPD)
$750K on file
$750K required
Cargo
Not on file
not required
Bond / surety
Not on file
not required
Insurance filings
ON FILELiability (BIPD) — BMC-91X$750K coverageeff 09/07/2013
NORTHLAND INSURANCE COMPANY· policy WN128981
Authority history (2) ▾
08/12/2013COMMONINVOLUNTARY REVOCATIONDISCONTINUED REVOCATION (09/04/2013)
09/13/2011MOTOR PROPERTY COMMON CARRIERGRANTED
Insurance history2 insurers on record
Filing timeline (3)
  1. SPARTA INSURANCE COMPANY$750KCancelled
    BIPD/Primary · eff 09/07/201209/07/2013
  2. SPARTA INSURANCE COMPANY$750KReplaced
    BIPD/Primary · eff 10/04/201109/07/2012
  3. SPARTA INSURANCE COMPANY$750KReplaced
    BIPD/Primary · eff 09/07/201110/04/2011

Source: FMCSA Licensing & Insurance (L&I), public data. This shows the carrier’s federal insurance filings (BMC-91X liability, BMC-34 cargo) — the federally-required minimums on file for operating authority — not the carrier’s full commercial policy (its actual auto combined-single-limit, general liability, cargo, or workers’ comp, which appear on the carrier’s ACORD certificate of insurance). Always confirm current coverage with a COI from the carrier’s agent before making a vetting decision.

Roadside inspection performance

Out-of-service rate vs national average. Lower is better.

Vehicle12 inspections · 25% OOS · National 22%
Driver25 inspections · 0% OOS · National 6.7%

CSA performance breakdown

FMCSA · Sep 2026

25 inspections · 23 violations (3 OOS) · 10% of inspections had an OOS finding.

25
Inspections
23
Violations
3
OOS violations
10
Distinct codes

Violations by BASIC

click to filter codes

18
total

Most inspected in · top 8 states

  • FL8
  • AL3
  • CO3
  • OH2
  • MS2
  • TX2
  • KS2
  • AR2

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.

Recommendations

What’s driving each score, what to do about it, and where it could go.

Vehicle out-of-service rate exceeds the national average

High impact

Vehicle OOS rate is 25% vs the 22% national average. Carriers above the national OOS average draw more enforcement attention (audits, roadside stops) and can see higher insurance premiums.

What to do
  • Review recent inspections with out-of-service violations and fix the root causes with equipment and drivers
  • Run a preventative-maintenance program; periodically inspect tires, brakes and lights
  • Reinforce thorough pre-trip and post-trip inspections; retrain where needed

Following / lane / reckless violations are the leading contributor to Unsafe Driving

Low impact

Estimated Unsafe Driving percentile of 48% is under the 65% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.

What’s contributing2 violations (24 mo)
Following / lane / reckless2 viol100%
  • 392.2-SLLTCDState/Local Laws - Failed to obey a traffic control device - Permanent or Temporary - e.g., safety official, signal, sign, light, lane marking, other1× · 67%
  • 392.2LCImproper lane change1× · 33%
What to do
  • Defensive-driving refresher on following distance and lane discipline
Projected estimatecould improve up to 28 pts in ~12 mo
nowin 12 months
Current trend 50% followed 100% followed 65% line

Log / ELD device violations are the leading contributor to Hours-of-Service Compliance

Low impact

Estimated Hours-of-Service Compliance percentile of 46% is under the 65% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.

What’s contributing6 violations (24 mo)
Log / ELD device6 viol100%
  • 395.30B1-ELDDFRHOS (ELD) - Driver failing to review records and certify the accuracy of the information.6× · 100%
What to do
  • Make sure the ELD is registered, working, and drivers know how to log in and certify daily
Projected estimatecould improve up to 22 pts in ~12 mo
nowin 12 months
Current trend 50% followed 100% followed 65% line

Driver Fitness needs attention

Low impact

Estimated Driver Fitness percentile of 0% is under the 80% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.

What to do
  • Review recent inspections with violations in this BASIC and take remedial action with drivers/equipment

Controlled Substances/Alcohol needs attention

Low impact

Estimated Controlled Substances/Alcohol percentile of 0% is under the 80% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.

What to do
  • Review recent inspections with violations in this BASIC and take remedial action with drivers/equipment

Tires violations are the leading contributor to Vehicle Maintenance

Low impact

Estimated Vehicle Maintenance percentile of 25% is under the 80% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.

What’s contributing6 violations · 3 OOS (24 mo)
Tires2 OOS2 viol54%
  • 393.75A3-TAOLTires - All others, leaking or inflation less than 50% of the maximum inflation pressure on tire not equipped with ATIS2× · 54%
Brakes1 OOS3 viol38%
  • 396.3A1-BNMHBrake - Non-manufactured hole or crack in the spring brake housing section of a parking brake1× · 16%
  • 393.55C1-BAir Brake - Truck-tractor manufactured on or after March 1, 1997, not equipped with an ABS system. System does not function or indicates a fault.1× · 11%
  • 393.45D-BAir Brake - Audible air leak at a proper connection1× · 11%
Lighting / lamps1 viol8%
  • 393.11A1-CSLRRConspicuity Systems - Truck tractor, lower rear retro reflective sheeting missing on vehicle manufactured on or after July 1, 19971× · 8%
What to do
  • Gauge and thump every tire on the walk-around, including inner duals
  • Replace before tread hits the limit; correct low pressure immediately
  • Prioritize the out-of-service items — they carry the heaviest weight
Projected estimatecould improve up to 17 pts in ~12 mo
nowin 12 months
Current trend 50% followed 100% followed 80% line

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.

Improving
1
Inspections
0
Violations
0
Out-of-service
1
Clean
Focus here first
🎓
Turn these into driver coaching — and prove it
FleetTrained (my companion project) makes branded, multilingual training videos for these exact violations — your driver watches and gets a completion certificate for the file.

Based on roadside inspections in the last 90 days, ranked by what recurs most. Informational, not legal advice.

Inspection & crash map

live · FMCSA MCMIS

Every inspection and crash on record — hover a point for the summary, click for full detail (codes, severity, CSA points).

35
Inspections
32
Violations
4
Out-of-service
62
CSA points
11
Crashes
16
States
cleanviolOOS

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 NHTSA

20 distinct vehicles seen in this carrier’s roadside inspections.

11 trailer 9 truck
2013 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailersseen 7×
1GRAP0625DJ638050· QA34KD FL
2014 KENWORTH T680seen 7×
1XKYDP9X1EJ394632· AB14DD FL
2007 VOLVO TRUCK VNLseen 6×
4V4NC9TK37N454033· 688DGX CO
2015 UTILITY TRAILER MANUFACTURER Utility Trailer Manufacturerseen 6×
1UYVS2535FP204521· 241QXK CO
2022 VOLVO TRUCK VNLseen 6×
4V4NC9EH9NN605472· AB16DD FL
2020 VOLVO TRUCK VNLseen 5×
4V4NC9EH5LN233089· AB17DD FL
2015 VOLVO TRUCK VNLseen 4×
4V4NC9EJ7FN188292· AB72AY FL
2015 WABASH VANS Dry Van Duraplateseen 4×
1JJV532D3FL877217· 2659408 ME
1989 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailersseen 4×
1GRAA0626KJ128319· 2549CU FL
1989 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailersseen 4×
1GRAP0625KJ101806· 2548CU FL
2016 WABASH VANS Dry Van Duraplateseen 4×
1JJV532D9GL898557· 3711CP FL
2007 FREIGHTLINER Columbiaseen 2×
1FUJA6CK37LX35462· JD27EU FL
2013 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailersseen 2×
1GRAP0622DJ638054· 3998CK FL
2011 FREIGHTLINER Cascadiaseen 2×
1FUJGLDR5BSBA8820· XE125D FL
2019 VANGUARD NATIONAL TRAILER CORPORATION (VNTC) VANGUARD NATIONAL TRAILER CORPORATION (VNTC)
5V8VC5324KM902134· 640143ST IL
2018 FREIGHTLINER Cascadia
3AKJGHDV8JSKA5711· XA389K FL
2003 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailers
1GRAA062X3T503201· 0432CP FL
2015 UTILITY TRAILER MANUFACTURER Utility Trailer Manufacturer
1UYVS253XFP294202· 7716CZ FL
2019 VOLVO TRUCK VNL
4V4NC9EG1KN904201· AB19CM FL
2017 HYUNDAI TRANSLEAD TRAILERS Hyundai Translead Trailers
3H3V532C5HT303034· QA62AY FL

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 census

AUTHORIZED FOR HIRE

Power units
8
on file (MCS-150)
Drivers
10
10 hold a CDL
Annual mileage
0.9M mi
reported 2024
Recordable crash rate
0.00
per million miles
How far they run · drivers by operating lane
  • Interstate · 100+ mi10 drivers
Company officer
ERMIN KURTOVIC
Operation
Interstate
Registered since
2009-11-02
Last MCS-150 update
2025-12-02
Census status
Active

Fleet: 8 trucks · 4 owned tractors · 5 owned trailers · 4 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 graph

This carrier shares VINs with 4 other carriers — review the connections below as part of your vetting.

4
Connected carriers
4
Fleet-transfer links
1
Most shared VINs
0
Strong links

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
  1. 12/02/2025MCS-150 update filed

    0.9M mi reported (2024)

  2. 09/07/2013Insurance filed — NORTHLAND INSURANCE COMPANY

    Liability (BIPD) — BMC-91X · policy WN128981

  3. 09/07/2013Insurance cancelled — SPARTA INSURANCE COMPANY

    BIPD/Primary · policy 013CP0107300

  4. 08/12/2013COMMON — INVOLUNTARY REVOCATION

    DISCONTINUED REVOCATION (09/04/2013)

  5. 09/07/2012Insurance replaced — SPARTA INSURANCE COMPANY

    BIPD/Primary · policy 013CP0064000

  6. 10/04/2011Insurance replaced — SPARTA INSURANCE COMPANY

    BIPD/Primary · policy 013CP0063700

  7. 09/13/2011MOTOR PROPERTY COMMON CARRIER — GRANTED
  8. 11/02/2009Registered 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
Not rated
Type
Rated
Last review
📄

MCS-150 registration

Form date
2025-12-02
Reported mileage
858,233 mi (2024)
📜

Changes on file

FMCSA census history
  1. January, 2021

    First on-record entry — SARA TRANS EXPRESS INC, CLEARWATER, FL

Got a violation you want to contest?

Use the free AI-powered DataQs Drafter to generate a polished challenge letter — quotes the relevant 49 CFR, predicts your grant chance.

Open the Drafter →
Data sourced from public FMCSA records via safer.fmcsa.dot.gov · Latest FMCSA update: Sep 2026 · Page refreshed: Sep 22, 2026, 8:13 PM. VioCodes is not affiliated with FMCSA. To dispute incorrect data, file a DataQs Request for Data Review.