CSA
Authorized · PropertyUSDOT 4297529· MC1673146· CARRIER· EIN 99-4374074
⬇ PDF report

FAO TRANSPORT LLC

8503 LACEY AVE, SAINT LOUIS, MO, 63123(314) 598-9576dispatch@fao-transport.comBENJAMIN SERKES
Vetting snapshot
Authority
Active
operating authority
Insurance
$750K BIPD
BENCHMARK SPECIALTY INSURANCE CO.
Vehicle OOS
50%
above 22% national avg
Driver OOS
38.7%
above 6.7% national avg
Crashes 24mo
0
clean
Red flags
None
nothing flagged
60
/ 100

Risk factors

Moderate riskVioCodes score
Vehicle OOS 50% — well above the 22% national averageDriver OOS 38.7% — above the 6.7% national average

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

MC1673146

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 12/11/2025
BENCHMARK SPECIALTY INSURANCE CO.· policy FLBSIC-1611-01975
Authority history (1) ▾
10/15/2024MOTOR PROPERTY COMMON CARRIERGRANTED
Insurance history2 insurers on record
Filing timeline (2)
  1. PROGRESSIVE CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY$1MReplaced
    BIPD/Primary · eff 06/16/202512/11/2025
  2. PROGRESSIVE CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY$1MReplaced
    BIPD/Primary · eff 10/09/202406/16/2025

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.

Vehicle22 inspections · 50% OOS · National 22%
Driver31 inspections · 38.7% OOS · National 6.7%

CSA performance breakdown

FMCSA · Sep 2026

31 inspections · 134 violations (40 OOS) · 60% of inspections had an OOS finding.

31
Inspections
134
Violations
40
OOS violations
10
Distinct codes

Violations by BASIC

click to filter codes

33
total

Top cited codes

score = count × severity weight

Most inspected in · top 8 states

  • MO5
  • TN4
  • AR3
  • CA2
  • OR2
  • AZ2
  • IA2
  • NM2

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.

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

High impact

Estimated Unsafe Driving percentile of 76% is at/over the 65% intervention line. Carriers with a BASIC in alert are prioritized for enforcement (warning letters, audits) and inspected more often — which tends to generate still more violations.

What’s contributing5 violations (24 mo)
Following / lane / reckless3 viol54%
  • 392.2-SLLTCDState/Local Laws - Failed to obey a traffic control device - Permanent or Temporary - e.g., safety official, signal, sign, light, lane marking, other2× · 42%
  • 392.2-SLLLRState/Local Laws - Lane restriction violation1× · 13%
Speeding1 viol42%
  • 392.2-SLLS4State/Local Laws - Speeding 15 or more miles per hour over the speed limit1× · 42%
Lighting / lamps1 viol4%
  • 392.22A-DDriver - Failed to activate hazard warning signal flashers1× · 4%
What to do
  • Defensive-driving refresher on following distance and lane discipline
Projected estimatecould improve up to 31 pts in ~12 mo
nowin 12 months
Current trend 50% followed 100% followed 65% line

Following / lane / reckless violations are the leading contributor to Hours-of-Service Compliance

High impact

Estimated Hours-of-Service Compliance percentile of 100% is at/over the 65% intervention line. Carriers with a BASIC in alert are prioritized for enforcement (warning letters, audits) and inspected more often — which tends to generate still more violations.

What’s contributing43 violations · 12 OOS (24 mo)
Following / lane / reckless4 OOS11 viol41%
  • 395.3A2-HOSPDITHOS (Property) - Driver driving beyond the 14 hour after coming on duty following 10 consecutive hours off duty at the time of inspection. Time4× · 16%
  • 395.3A3I-HOSPDITHOS (Property) - Driving more than 11 hours following 10 consecutive hours off duty at the time of inspection. Time3× · 14%
  • 395.3A1-HOSPDHOS (Property) - Driving more than 11 hours following 10 consecutive hours off duty during the current 8 consecutive day period. Date and Time3× · 7%
False log / RODS8 OOS9 viol38%
  • 395.8E-HOSPDOOSHOS (Property) - Driver produces a false record of duty status that concealed an HOS limitation violation after the last rest period. Explain:4× · 21%
  • 395.8A1-HOSPHOS (Property) - Failing to have a record of duty status using the method prescribed4× · 16%
  • 395.22H4Driver failed to maintain supply of blank drivers records of duty status graph-grids1× · 0%
Hours exceeded4 viol12%
  • 395.3AIIDriving beyond 8 hour driving limit since the end of the last on duty, off duty or sleeper berth period of at least 30 consecutive minutes4× · 12%
Log / ELD device16 viol8%
  • 395.30B2-ELDDFC24HOS (ELD) - Driver failing to certify the record immediately after the final required entry has been made or corrected for the 24 hour period.4× · 3%
  • 395.30B1Driver failed to certify the accuracy of the information gathered by the ELD3× · 1%
  • 395.24HOS (ELD) - ELD Form and Manner2× · 1%
What to do
  • Defensive-driving refresher on following distance and lane discipline
  • Prioritize the out-of-service items — they carry the heaviest weight
Projected estimatecould improve up to 7 pts in ~12 mo
nowin 12 months
Current trend 50% followed 100% followed 65% line

Tires violations are the leading contributor to Vehicle Maintenance

High impact

Estimated Vehicle Maintenance percentile of 100% is at/over the 80% intervention line. Carriers with a BASIC in alert are prioritized for enforcement (warning letters, audits) and inspected more often — which tends to generate still more violations.

What’s contributing49 violations · 19 OOS (24 mo)
Tires11 OOS11 viol43%
  • 393.75A3-TAOLTires - All others, leaking or inflation less than 50% of the maximum inflation pressure on tire not equipped with ATIS8× · 32%
  • 393.75A3-TAOLTISTires - All others, leaking in tread area and inflation less than 50% of the maximum inflation pressure on tire equipped with ATIS3× · 11%
Brakes5 OOS13 viol20%
  • 393.45B2-B-AIRAir Brake - Hose/tubing damaged or not secured3× · 3%
  • 393.45D-BHDBAir Brake - Damaged by heat or broken1× · 2%
  • 393.43A-TPVAir Brake - Inoperable or missing tractor protection valve1× · 2%
Lighting / lamps10 viol18%
  • 393.9A-LRLILighting - Tail lamp - Any inoperative2× · 5%
  • 393.19Inoperative/Defective Hazard Warning Lamp1× · 2%
  • 393.9A-LSLILighting - Stop lamps - Any inoperative.1× · 2%
Inspection / repair / DVIR6 viol8%
  • 396.17C-PIOperating a CMV without documentation of a periodic inspection6× · 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 30 pts in ~12 mo
nowin 12 months
Current trend 50% followed 100% followed 80% line

Vehicle and driver out-of-service rate exceeds the national average

High impact

Vehicle OOS rate is 52.2% vs the 22% national average. Driver OOS rate is 40.6% vs the 6.7% 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

A high share of violations are occurring in Riverside County, CA

Medium impact

21 of 116 violations in the last 12 months (18%) came from inspections in Riverside County, CA. That can mean tougher enforcement there or simply more of your miles run through it — either way it's worth a look.

What to do
  • Review the inspections from Riverside County, CA to spot recurring issues
  • Brief drivers running that lane; consider rerouting around the toughest enforcement corridors where practical

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

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.

Trending worse
7
Inspections
62
Violations
23
Out-of-service
0
Clean
Where the violations are
Vehicle Maintenance 52%Hours-of-Service Compliance 27%Other 18%Unsafe Driving 2%Driver Fitness 2%
Focus here first
1Vehicle Maintenance
32 violations · 14 OOS · 52% of recent
  • 393.75A3-TAOL×8Tires - All others, leaking or inflation less than 50% of the maximum inflation pressure on tire not equipped with ATIS · OOS
  • 396.17C-PI×3Operating a CMV without documentation of a periodic inspection
  • 393.75A3-TAOLTIS×2Tires - All others, leaking in tread area and inflation less than 50% of the maximum inflation pressure on tire equipped with ATIS · OOS
Do this
  • Gauge/thump every tire on the walk-around, including inner duals
  • Replace before tread hits the limit and correct low pressure immediately
2Hours-of-Service Compliance
17 violations · 7 OOS · 27% of recent
  • 395.30B2-ELDDFC24×4HOS (ELD) - Driver failing to certify the record immediately after the final required entry has been made or corrected for the 24 hour period.
  • 395.8E-HOSPDOOS×3HOS (Property) - Driver produces a false record of duty status that concealed an HOS limitation violation after the last rest period. Explain: · OOS
  • 395.3A2-HOSPDIT×2HOS (Property) - Driver driving beyond the 14 hour after coming on duty following 10 consecutive hours off duty at the time of inspection. Time · OOS
Do this
  • Log in and annotate the ELD correctly every day; fix edits promptly
  • Plan trips around available hours — never falsify a log
3Other
11 violations · 1 OOS · 18% of recent
  • 392.2-SLLSR×2State/Local Laws - State registration/tag violation
  • 393.9A-LTSIR×2Lighting - Turn signal -Any inoperative on a unit that is not the rearmost unit
  • 392.2-SLLIRP×2State/Local Laws - IRP apportioned tag or registration violation
Do this
  • Review these violations with drivers and add the fix to your pre-trip and PM routine
🎓
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).

32
Inspections
138
Violations
40
Out-of-service
1134
CSA points
0
Crashes
17
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

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

10 trailer 10 truck 1 incomplete vehicle
2022 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailersseen 6×
1GR4M0627NH336161· 602137T TN
2020 MACK Anthemseen 5×
1M1AN4GY9LM013660· TEMPTAG MD
2022 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailersseen 5×
1GR1P062XNT419896· 518462T TN
2022 KENWORTH T680seen 5×
1XKYDP9X1NJ479504· 25KT2X MO
2025 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailersseen 4×
1GR1P0620SJ721530· 5500026 ME
2021 RAM 3500seen 4×
3C63RRGL0MG667652· 16J7LN MO
2022 PETERBILT 579seen 4×
1XPBD49X3ND764573· TEMP TAG MO
2021 PETERBILT 579seen 3×
1XPBDP9X8MD707740· TEMP MO
2023 RAWMAXX Rawmaxxseen 3×
3EVGF3624P1103228· 443256T TN
2020 FREIGHTLINER M2seen 3×
3ALACWFC5LDLP5740· DWS6259 FL
2021 KENWORTH T680seen 3×
1XKYD49X3MJ425263· 25KT1X MO
2024 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailersseen 3×
1GR4M0625RH602377· 518410T TN
2024 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailersseen 3×
1GR4M0627RH537175· 5552657 ME
2021 PETERBILT 579seen 2×
1XPBDP9X6MD707641· 80KT3Y MO
2012 FORD F-250
1FT7W2B69CED23304· 4CGX97 MO
2025 BIG TEX Big Tex
16V3F3822S6371510· 90M8HS MO
2021 PETERBILT 579
1XPBDP9X1MD707711· 52KT0V MO
2026 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailers
1GR1P0627TT731056· 5502233 ME
2026 GREAT DANE TRAILERS Great Dane Trailers
1GR1P0623TJ741157· 5551532 ME
2022 INTERNATIONAL LT625
3HSDZTZR9NN878543· 36KT5W MO
2023 FAST CARGO LLC FAST CARGO LLC
7NBBE1621P1006544· 443256T TN

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
6
on file (MCS-150)
Drivers
2
0 hold a CDL
Annual mileage
0M mi
reported 2024
Recordable crash rate
0.00
per million miles
How far they run · drivers by operating lane
  • Interstate · 100+ mi2 drivers
Company officer
BENJAMIN SERKES
Operation
Interstate
Registered since
2024-09-17
Last MCS-150 update
2025-09-18
Census status
Active

Fleet: 6 trucks · 6 owned tractors · 8 owned trailers.

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 10 other carriers — review the connections below as part of your vetting.

10
Connected carriers
10
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

6 events
  1. 12/11/2025Insurance filed — BENCHMARK SPECIALTY INSURANCE CO.

    Liability (BIPD) — BMC-91X · policy FLBSIC-1611-01975

  2. 12/11/2025Insurance replaced — PROGRESSIVE CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY

    BIPD/Primary · policy CA987866396

  3. 09/18/2025MCS-150 update filed

    0.0M mi reported (2024)

  4. 06/16/2025Insurance replaced — PROGRESSIVE CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY

    BIPD/Primary · policy CA987866396

  5. 10/15/2024MOTOR PROPERTY COMMON CARRIER — GRANTED
  6. 09/17/2024Registered 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
2025-09-18
Reported mileage
13,432 mi (2024)

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Data sourced from public FMCSA records via safer.fmcsa.dot.gov · Latest FMCSA update: Sep 2026 · Page refreshed: Sep 23, 2026, 4:17 PM. VioCodes is not affiliated with FMCSA. To dispute incorrect data, file a DataQs Request for Data Review.