Getting non-preventable crashes off your record
The Crash Preventability Determination Program (CPDP) lets you ask FMCSA to recognize that a crash wasn't your driver's fault — and stop counting it against your Crash Indicator BASIC. Here's how it works and how to file a request that wins.
By Yurii Chornous · Updated June 2026
Key takeaways
- CPDP is an FMCSA program for crashes in defined eligible categories where the truck driver had little or no chance to avoid the crash — being rear-ended, struck while legally parked, hit by a wrong-way or impaired driver, animal strikes, and more.
- You submit through the DataQs portal, with the police accident report plus supporting evidence.
- A Not Preventable finding removes the crash from your SMS Crash Indicator measure and annotates the driver’s PSP — the crash is recharacterized, not deleted.
- Filing is free, takes about an hour with documents in hand, and a denial leaves you no worse off than not filing.
- Realistic timeline: a few months from submission to final determination.
What the Crash Preventability Determination Program is
Every DOT-recordable crash — one involving a fatality, an injury treated away from the scene, or a vehicle towed from the scene — lands on your carrier record and feeds your SMS Crash Indicator BASIC, regardless of fault. A truck sitting legally at a red light that gets rear-ended by a drunk driver takes the same statistical hit as a truck that caused the crash.
The Crash Preventability Determination Program (CPDP) is FMCSA’s fix for that. After a demonstration program, FMCSA made CPDP a standing program in 2020 and has expanded the eligible crash types since. For crashes that fit one of the eligible categories, a carrier (or driver) can submit evidence and ask FMCSA to formally determine the crash was not preventable — meaning a reasonably alert, skilled driver could not have avoided it.
Note the distinction from a regular data challenge: if the crash record is simply wrong (wrong carrier, didn’t meet the recordable threshold), that’s an ordinary Request for Data Review — see our DataQs guide. CPDP is for crashes that did happen and are recorded correctly, but weren’t your driver’s fault.
Which crashes are eligible
CPDP is not open to any crash you believe was unfair — the crash must fit one of FMCSA’s defined eligible categories. The common thread: the CMV driver had little or no agency in the event. The current categories cover situations like these:
- ✓Struck in the rear while legally stopped or proceeding lawfully
- ✓Struck by a motorist driving in the wrong direction
- ✓Struck by a motorist who crossed the centerline or median
- ✓Struck by a motorist under the influence (per a court conviction or police citation)
- ✓Struck by a motorist who fell asleep, had a medical emergency, or was distracted
- ✓Struck while legally parked
- ✓CMV was struck by cargo, an object, or a person projected from elsewhere
- ✓Crash involved an individual committing suicide or attempting suicide
- ✓Crash with an animal
- ✓Crash that was the result of a driver of another vehicle being convicted of a crime (e.g., assault, evasion)
- ✓Rare or unusual crashes that fall outside normal driving operations
FMCSA has expanded this list more than once, and the precise definitions matter — “struck in the rear,” for example, has specific boundaries. Before filing, check the current eligible types on the official FMCSA CPDP page and match your crash to a category honestly. A crash that fits no category will be rejected as ineligible no matter how clearly the other party was at fault.
How to submit a CPDP request through DataQs
CPDP requests go through the same DataQs portal used for violation challenges — there’s a dedicated crash-preventability request type inside it. The mechanics:
- Get the police accident report (PAR) first. This is the backbone of every CPDP submission. Request a certified copy from the state DMV, DOT, or the investigating agency — it can take a few weeks, so start here.
- Open a DataQs account and start a crash review request for the specific crash on your record, selecting the eligible crash type it falls under.
- Attach your evidence: the PAR, dashcam footage, photos of the scene and vehicle positions, witness statements, court dispositions or citations issued to the other driver, and insurance fault determinations.
- Write a short, factual narrative — what your driver was doing (legally), what the other party did, and which eligible category the crash fits. Point to the evidence; don’t argue feelings.
- Track the request in the portal and respond quickly if FMCSA asks for more documentation.
Evidence tips that move the needle
Reviewers want independent corroboration, not your version of events. A PAR that narrates the other driver’s fault, dashcam video, and a DUI conviction record are the heavy hitters. If the PAR is thin or ambiguous, compensate with footage and witness statements. And if writing the narrative is the part you dread, the DataQs Drafter can structure a clean, professional submission for you.
What a “Not Preventable” finding actually changes
A favorable determination doesn’t erase the crash — it recharacterizes it. Concretely:
- The crash is excluded from your SMS Crash Indicator measure, so it stops pushing that BASIC percentile up. SMS displays your results with not-preventable crashes removed.
- The driver’s PSP record is annotated to show FMCSA reviewed the crash and found it not preventable — valuable in hiring, insurance underwriting, and litigation.
- The crash remains in FMCSA’s crash file and still appears in the history; it’s marked, not deleted.
You can see how crash records show up from the outside by pulling any company’s profile in our carrier lookup — the crash record section is exactly what a broker or insurer reviews. If terms like Crash Indicator, PSP, or MCMIS are fuzzy, the glossary has one-line definitions for all of them.
Realistic timelines — and whether it’s worth it
Expect the whole process to take a few months. Getting the PAR alone can take 2–6 weeks. Once submitted, FMCSA reviews the request and posts a preliminary determination, with a window for input before it becomes final. Incomplete submissions are the biggest source of delay — every back-and-forth for a missing document restarts the clock.
Is it worth it? Almost always, if the crash genuinely fits a category. Filing is free, a denial doesn’t make anything worse, and the payoff is real: crashes carry into your Crash Indicator for 24 months, sit on the driver’s PSP for five years, and get scrutinized at every insurance renewal. For a small fleet, a single removed crash can move the Crash Indicator percentile dramatically — with few crashes in the peer group math, each one carries enormous weight.
Frequently asked questions
Only crashes that fit one of FMCSA’s defined eligible categories — situations where the CMV driver had little or no ability to avoid the crash, such as being struck while legally parked or stopped, being rear-ended, being hit by a wrong-way, impaired, or medically incapacitated driver, animal strikes, suicide or pedestrian-strike incidents, and infrastructure failures. The crash must also be DOT-recordable and actually appear on your record.
The police accident report is effectively mandatory — FMCSA needs the official account of what happened. Then add anything that independently shows the other party caused the crash: dashcam footage, scene and vehicle-position photos, witness statements, court records or citations issued to the other driver, and insurance fault findings.
Plan on a few months end to end. FMCSA first issues a preliminary determination, which is posted publicly with a window for input before it becomes final. Complete, well-documented submissions move noticeably faster than ones where FMCSA has to come back and request the police report or supporting evidence.
The crash is excluded from your SMS Crash Indicator measure, so it stops raising that BASIC percentile, and the driver’s PSP record is annotated to show FMCSA reviewed the crash and found it not preventable. The crash itself stays in FMCSA’s crash file — it is recharacterized, not erased.
Usually yes. A crash affects your Crash Indicator measure for 24 months, so there may still be score relief left — and it shows on the driver’s PSP for five years, where a not-preventable notation helps with hiring, insurance renewals, and litigation regardless of SMS timing.
Let the Drafter write your submission
Describe the crash, attach the police report, and get a polished, ready-to-submit narrative with the right structure and tone — plus an AI critique of the weak spots before FMCSA ever sees it. Free during beta.