CAROLINE'S EXPRESS LLC
Risk factors
Moderate 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 202622 inspections · 69 violations (11 OOS) · 29% of inspections had an OOS finding.
Violations by BASIC
click to filter codes
Top cited codes
score = count × severity weight
- 1395.8E-HOSPDHours-of-Service Compliance
HOS (Property) - No driver may make a false report in connection with a duty status. Explain
35
5× · sev 7
- 2393.48A-BIHEVehicle Maintenance
Hydraulic/Electric Brake - Inoperative other than a steering axle.
32
8× · sev 4
- 3393.9Vehicle Maintenance
Inoperable Required Lamp
6
3× · sev 2
- 4393.9A-LILVehicle Maintenance
Lighting - Identification lamp(s) inoperative
6
3× · sev 2
- 5395.24Hours-of-Service Compliance
HOS (ELD) - ELD Form and Manner
4
4× · sev 1
- 6393.9A-LLPLVehicle Maintenance
Lighting - License plate lamp inoperative
4
2× · sev 2
- 7393.95A4-EEUSVehicle Maintenance
Emergency Equipment - Fire Extinguishers - unsecured
4
2× · sev 2
- 8393.78Vehicle Maintenance
Wipers - Inoperative / missing / damaged wipers
2
2× · sev 1
- 9396.3A1-BOS2 OOS
Brake - Defective brake(s) are equal to or greater than 20% of the service brakes on the vehicle/combination
2
2×
- 10392.2-SLLSR
State/Local Laws - State registration/tag violation
2
2×
Most inspected in · top 8 states
- TN5
- IA3
- NC2
- VA2
- NM1
- KS1
- NY1
- WY1
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.
False log / RODS violations are the leading contributor to Hours-of-Service Compliance
High impactEstimated Hours-of-Service Compliance percentile of 84% is at/over the 60% 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.
- 395.8E-HOSPDHOS (Property) - No driver may make a false report in connection with a duty status. Explain5× · 67%
- 395.22H4Driver failed to maintain supply of blank drivers records of duty status graph-grids1× · 1%
- 395.3B1-PROPDriving after 60 hours on duty in a 7 day period. (Property carrying vehicle)1× · 12%
- 395.24HOS (ELD) - ELD Form and Manner4× · 8%
- 395.30B1-ELDDFRHOS (ELD) - Driver failing to review records and certify the accuracy of the information.1× · 2%
- 395.26BMotor carrier failed to ensure that the ELD automatically recorded the required data elements.1× · 1%
- 395.3A1-HOSPDHOS (Property) - Driving more than 11 hours following 10 consecutive hours off duty during the current 8 consecutive day period. Date and Time1× · 9%
- Audit ELD edits and duty-status annotations weekly; a false log is a high-severity, high-visibility violation
- Retrain on correct logging and never letting a load pressure a driver into a false entry
- Prioritize the out-of-service items — they carry the heaviest weight
Vehicle and driver out-of-service rate exceeds the national average
High impactVehicle OOS rate is 22.7% vs the 22% national average. Driver OOS rate is 8.3% 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.
- 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 Worth County, IA
Medium impact16 of 69 violations in the last 12 months (23%) came from inspections in Worth County, IA. 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 Worth County, IA to spot recurring issues
- Brief drivers running that lane; consider rerouting around the toughest enforcement corridors where practical
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
Brakes violations are the leading contributor to Vehicle Maintenance
Low impactEstimated Vehicle Maintenance percentile of 41% is under the 75% line. In decent shape, but here's what's driving it.
- 393.48A-BIHEHydraulic/Electric Brake - Inoperative other than a steering axle.8× · 24%
- 393.43D-BBrake - Missing or inoperable breakaway braking system on a trailer(s) or converter dolly1× · 4%
- 393.47A-BCFSHEHydraulic/Electric Brake - Contaminated friction surface1× · 3%
- 393.9A-LTSILighting - Turn signal - Any inoperative on the rearmost vehicle.1× · 6%
- 393.9A-LFTSILighting - Front - Turn signal - inoperative1× · 4%
- 393.9A-LILLighting - Identification lamp(s) inoperative3× · 4%
- 393.75B-TFVTires - Front, less than 4/32 inch tread depth1× · 6%
- 393.75C-TAOTD-LT2/32Tires - Less than 2/32 inch tread depth1× · 6%
- 393.52A-BInsufficient Braking Force as a Percentage of Gross Vehicle Weight or Gross Combination Weight1× · 4%
- 396.3A1-FFuel - Dripping leak.1× · 4%
- 393.76A-SBSleeper Berth - Does not meet dimensional requirements1× · 2%
- Check brake adjustment and listen for air leaks every pre-trip; put brakes on the PM schedule
- Fix air-loss and warning-light faults before dispatch — don’t “drive it in”
- 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.
- 393.48A-BIHE×4Hydraulic/Electric Brake - Inoperative other than a steering axle.
- 393.104F3-C×2Cargo - Loose or unfastened tiedown
- 393.95A4-EEUS×2Emergency Equipment - Fire Extinguishers - unsecured
- Check brake adjustment and listen for air leaks every pre-trip
- Fix air-loss and warning-light faults before dispatch; put brakes on the PM schedule
- 395.8E-HOSPD×5HOS (Property) - No driver may make a false report in connection with a duty status. Explain
- 395.24×4HOS (ELD) - ELD Form and Manner
- 395.30B1-ELDDFRHOS (ELD) - Driver failing to review records and certify the accuracy of the information.
- Log in and annotate the ELD correctly every day; fix edits promptly
- Plan trips around available hours — never falsify a log
- 392.2-SLLSRState/Local Laws - State registration/tag violation
- 396.3A1-BOSBrake - Defective brake(s) are equal to or greater than 20% of the service brakes on the vehicle/combination · OOS
- 392.2-SLLIFTAState/Local Laws - State tax/International Fuel Tax (IFTA) violation
- 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 NHTSA18 distinct vehicles seen in this carrier’s roadside inspections.
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 mi6 drivers
- Company officer
- TOM SHAFER
- Operation
- Interstate
- Registered since
- 2025-08-20
- Last MCS-150 update
- 2026-07-10
- Census status
- Active
Fleet: 5 trucks · 5 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 graphThis carrier shares VINs or officers with 6 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
6 events- 09/19/2026Insurance filed — Benchmark Specialty Insurance Company
Liability (BIPD) — BMC-91X · policy FLBSIC-1611-02953
- 09/19/2026Insurance ended — PROGRESSIVE HAWAII INSURANCE CORP
policy CA861972612
- 07/10/2026MCS-150 update filed
0.0M mi reported (2025)
- 09/19/2025MOTOR PROPERTY COMMON CARRIER — GRANTED
- 09/19/2025Insurance filed — PROGRESSIVE HAWAII INSURANCE CORP
Liability (BIPD) — BMC-91X · policy CA861972612
- 08/20/2025Registered 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
- 2026-07-10
- Reported mileage
- 1 mi (2025)
Got a violation you want to contest?
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