JAMES MELVIN PUCKETT JR
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 20261 inspections · 9 violations (3 OOS) · 100% of inspections had an OOS finding.
Violations by BASIC
click to filter codes
Top cited codes
score = count × severity weight
- 1393.75A3-TAOLVehicle Maintenance1 OOS
Tires - All others, leaking or inflation less than 50% of the maximum inflation pressure on tire not equipped with ATIS
8
1× · sev 8
- 2393.24C-LVehicle Maintenance
Lighting - Headlamp(s) improperly mounted
6
1× · sev 6
- 3393.9A-LRLIVehicle Maintenance
Lighting - Tail lamp - Any inoperative
6
1× · sev 6
- 4393.9A-LSLIVehicle Maintenance
Lighting - Stop lamps - Any inoperative.
6
1× · sev 6
- 5393.45B2-BHTDVehicle Maintenance1 OOS
Air Brake - Hose/tubing damage into the outer reinforcement ply.
4
1× · sev 4
- 6396.3A1-FVehicle Maintenance1 OOS
Fuel - Dripping leak.
3
1× · sev 3
- 7393.203B-CBPVehicle Maintenance
Cab and Body Parts - Cab/body mounts loose/broken/missing
2
1× · sev 2
- 8393.78A-WSVehicle Maintenance
Washers - Inoperative washing system.
1
1× · sev 1
- 9393.9A-LTSIR
Lighting - Turn signal -Any inoperative on a unit that is not the rearmost unit
1
1×
Most inspected in · top 1 states
- VA1
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.
Vehicle out-of-service rate exceeds the national average
High impactVehicle OOS rate is 100% vs the 22% 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
Unsafe Driving needs attention
Low impactEstimated Unsafe Driving percentile of 0% is under the 65% 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
Hours-of-Service Compliance needs attention
Low impactEstimated Hours-of-Service Compliance percentile of 0% is under the 65% 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 80% 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 80% 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
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.
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 NHTSA2 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.
Crash record (US, last 24 months)
Total
1
Tow-away
1
Injury
0
Fatal
0
Company profile
FMCSA censusAUTHORIZED FOR HIRE
- Interstate · 100+ mi1 drivers
- Company officer
- JAMES MELVIN PUCKETT JR
- Operation
- Interstate
- Registered since
- 1997-11-10
- Last MCS-150 update
- 2025-08-02
- Census status
- Active
Fleet: 1 trucks · 1 owned tractors · 1 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 emails with 60 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
2 events- 08/02/2025MCS-150 update filed
0.0M mi reported (2024)
- 11/10/1997Registered 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
- 2025-08-02
- Reported mileage
- 45,107 mi (2024)
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.