ERIC HELMS TRUCKING
Legal: ERIC HELMS
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 202628 inspections · 13 violations (5 OOS) · 13% 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
8
2× · sev 4
- 2396.3A1-TCVehicle Maintenance1 OOS
Tire in contact with another part of the vehicle
8
1× · sev 8
- 3396.3A1-TAOCVVehicle Maintenance1 OOS
Tires - All others, in contact with a part of the vehicle
8
1× · sev 8
- 4393.209D-STPALVehicle Maintenance1 OOS
Steering - Pitman arm loose on the output shaft
6
1× · sev 6
- 5393.45B2-BHTDVehicle Maintenance1 OOS
Air Brake - Hose/tubing damage into the outer reinforcement ply.
4
1× · sev 4
- 6393.11A1-CSLRRVehicle Maintenance
Conspicuity Systems - Truck tractor, lower rear retro reflective sheeting missing on vehicle manufactured on or after July 1, 1997
3
1× · sev 3
- 7392.2-SLLEQP
State/Local Laws - Violation of state and local law - Equipment violation.
1
1×
- 8393.60C
Windshield - Damaged or Discolored
1
1×
- 9392.2-SLLED
State/Local Laws - Excessive dimension (width/height/length)
1
1×
- 10395.3A3II
Driving beyond 8 hour driving limit since the end of the last on duty, off duty, or sleeper period of at least 30 minutes
1
1×
Most inspected in · top 3 states
- CA28
- NM1
- AZ1
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 CA
Medium impact6 of 9 violations in the last 12 months (67%) came from inspections in CA. 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 CA to spot recurring issues
- Brief drivers running that lane; consider rerouting around the toughest enforcement corridors where practical
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
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.
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 NHTSA22 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;EXEMPT FOR HIRE
- Interstate · <100 mi6 drivers
- Company officer
- SHELLIE HELMS
- Operation
- Interstate
- Registered since
- 1998-06-05
- Last MCS-150 update
- 2025-08-11
- Census status
- Active
Fleet: 6 trucks · 6 owned 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 with 3 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- 08/11/2025MCS-150 update filed
0.1M mi reported (2024)
- 06/05/1998Registered with FMCSA
AUTHORIZED FOR HIRE;EXEMPT FOR HIRE
Merged from FMCSA authority, insurance, out-of-service, and census records.
Operations
Classification
- AUTHORIZED FOR HIRE;EXEMPT FOR HIRE
Area served
- Interstate
FMCSA safety rating
- Rating
- Not rated
- Type
- Non-ratable review
- Rated
- —
- Last review
- 2026-08-05
MCS-150 registration
- Form date
- 2025-08-11
- Reported mileage
- 90,000 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.