FMCSA denies requests to alter accident reporting procedures

WASHINGTON — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is moving ahead with changes proposed last year to its Crash Preventability Determination Program (CPDP) but has declined to make changes that motor carriers assert unfairly target drivers.

Under the CPDP, which FMCSA has been operating since May 2020, carriers and drivers can submit to FMCSA requests for data review, known as RDRs, to determine the preventability of a truck crash using 16 specific types of crash categories.

Last year, FMCSA proposed modifying those categories and adding four more to better account for nonpreventable crashes.

While much of the trucking industry agreed with the move to modify and expand the program – at least based on comments received by FMCSA – some wanted FMCSA to go further.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, for example, contended that because the driver or carrier is responsible for getting a crash overturned based on the evidence, “the system forces drivers/carriers to step out of their roles as professional truckers and become crash investigators, evidence collectors, and perform multiple functions to upload necessary documentation for review,” stated OOIDA President Todd Spencer, in comments filed by the association.

In addition, Spencer pointed out, a submitter to a crash review must wait over 90 days to receive a determination from FMCSA. “A non-preventable crash posted on a small motor carrier’s safety record lingering for 90 days or more can be crippling and could shut down an otherwise safe carrier,” he asserted.

“We believe transferring the burden to the agency to determine crash preventability will help keep safe, experienced motor carriers in business and will also reduce the current backlog of CPDP submissions. The implementation of the CPDP has clearly proven that motor carriers should not have to submit documentation and wait months on end in order to remove non-preventable crashes from their record.”

FMCSA wasn’t swayed by OOIDA’s argument, however. In a notice posted on Tuesday, the agency said the CPDP process will remain initiated by carriers and drivers.

“The burden is on the submitter to provide compelling evidence that the crash is eligible and not preventable,” FMCSA stated in responding to OOIDA. “Submitters are encouraged to submit other documents to support their request including videos, pictures, and court documents.”

FMCSA also pointed out that the crash data fields submitted to FMCSA in the agency’s Motor Carrier Management Information System (MCMIS) are a subset of the information available on the police accident report (PAR).

“FMCSA does not have direct access to PARs or other supporting documentation about a crash; and a preventability determination requires more information than is available in MCMIS.”

For crashes resulting in a death, the CPDP requires that proper DOT post-accident drug and alcohol testing results – or an explanation of why the tests were not completed or not completed within required time frames – be submitted. Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE: KNX) had requested leniency in situations in which privacy laws prevent the carrier from getting an update on the severity of injuries from the crash.

However, “the agency will not change this requirement for fatal crashes,” FMCSA stated in response. “This program requirement aligns with carriers’ responsibilities for post-accident drug and alcohol testing outlined in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations.”

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ: WERN) commented on the proposal that it supports the new crash types, particularly those in which video evidence can be used. The carrier asked FMCSA to consider accepting video footage directly from carriers as a source of data leading up to an accident without also requiring the PAR, which Werner said can take months to receive.

“This could allow FMCSA to clear the not-at-fault driver and remove a crash from the Safety Measurement System in a timely manner,” Werner stated in its comments.

But FMCSA declined to rescind the police accident report requirement.

“This official documentation is needed to corroborate other information provided with the RDR to ensure the correct carrier, driver, and crash event is being reviewed for preventability,” FMCSA responded.

It added that the CPDP found that the PAR “is best single source of crash information and that the majority of PARs submitted contained sufficient detail to complete a preventability review.”

FMCSA noted that the eligibility criteria for the new and updated crash types will not be applied retroactively to ensure consistency when analyzing crashes. It will accept RDRs for the new and updated crash types for crashes that occurred on or after Dec. 1, 2024.