How risk signals work
Every carrier and broker report starts with a short list of risk signals: facts in the FMCSA record that call for a closer look before you book a load. We do not compute a score or a rating. Each signal is a fact you can check yourself, and the overall level is simply the most serious signal found.
| High-risk signals found | At least one signal that, on its own, should stop a booking until it is resolved. |
|---|---|
| Review before booking | One or more signals that are often harmless but are also common in fraud or poor compliance. |
| No risk signals found | Nothing in the record matched. This is not a guarantee. |
High-risk signals
- Operating authority inactive or not granted. The company may not haul or broker interstate freight for hire.
- No liability insurance on file for a carrier with active authority, where FMCSA requires a filing, in current Motus data. In the older snapshot, a filing cancelled since then is a review signal: a replacement may have been filed after it.
- No broker bond or trust fund on file in current Motus data (brokers with active authority). Brokers need $75,000 of financial security.
- Insurance cancellation pending in current Motus data. In the older snapshot it is a review signal, because the policy may have been replaced since.
- Phone number also used by an older company whose authority is inactive, when this USDOT number is less than two years old. Legitimate successor companies do this, and so do carriers that re-register under a new name to leave a bad record behind.
- Unsatisfactory safety rating.
Review signals
- Phone number shared with three or more other companies. Normal for dispatch services and related companies.
- Five or more other companies at the same street address and ZIP. Normal for registered-agent offices and truck yards; also used by shell companies.
- MC number listed on another company record.
- Phone number, address or legal name changed in the last 90 days, based on our daily comparison of FMCSA data since October 2026. Account takeovers often start with changed contact details.
- USDOT number registered less than 180 days ago.
- Liability insurance below the minimum FMCSA lists for the authority.
- Authority pending, or a Conditional safety rating.
- Vehicle out-of-service rate more than 1.5 times the state average, with at least five vehicle inspections in 24 months.
- Ten or more power units but no roadside inspections in 24 months, for a USDOT number older than two years. The registered fleet size may be out of date.
Information only
- MCS-150 not updated in more than two years. Carriers must update their registration every two years. This does not change the overall level.
Limits
Signals are only as current as the data. For most carriers FMCSA has not yet published a Motus record, so authority and insurance come from the last snapshot of May 14, 2026 and the report says so. A signal is not a finding of fraud or wrongdoing, and the absence of signals does not confirm who you are talking to. Always confirm authority and insurance on FMCSA's Motus record and call the company back on a number you found independently.
If a signal on your company's report is based on wrong data, see report an error.