CSA Score

A CSA (Compliance, Safety, Accountability) score is a safety performance metric assigned to motor carriers by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) under its Safety Measurement System (SMS). The system evaluates carriers across seven Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs): Unsafe Driving, Hours-of-Service Compliance, Driver Fitness, Controlled Substances/Alcohol, Vehicle Maintenance, Hazardous Materials Compliance, and Crash Indicator. Scores are expressed as percentiles from 0–100, with higher percentages indicating worse performance relative to peers in the same safety event group. Intervention thresholds trigger FMCSA enforcement actions: 65th percentile for Unsafe Driving and Crash Indicator, 80th percentile for most other BASICs, and 50–60th percentile for hazmat carriers. A carrier exceeding intervention thresholds faces warning letters, targeted investigations, cooperative safety plans, and potential out-of-service orders that halt operations entirely. CSA scores directly impact insurance premiums — carriers with scores above the 75th percentile pay 15–35% higher premiums than clean carriers — and influence shipper selection decisions, as major shippers increasingly require CSA percentiles below 50 across all BASICs as a qualification criterion. Data feeding CSA scores comes from roadside inspections, crash reports, and investigation results over a rolling 24-month window, with more recent events weighted more heavily. Carriers can challenge inaccurate data through the DataQs system, and proactive fleet management — including routine pre-trip inspections, ELD compliance, and driver training programs — keeps scores in favorable ranges. For fleet-operating businesses, accurate financial tracking of compliance costs through platforms like Quadient AP ensures proper allocation of safety expenditures across maintenance, training, and regulatory categories.