ISS Scores Help Determine Inspection Frequency for Carriers
Inspection Selection System Score, or ISS scores, are a part of the FMCSA’s Motor Carrier Management Information System (MCMIS) and are used by law enforcement officers to quickly decide which trucks and truck drivers to stop for inspections. Your ISS score is tied to your DOT number, so officers can get your score quickly from their system. The ISS score is frequently used to make weigh station bypass decisions.
ISS scores use a combination of a carrier’s Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs), CSA scores, and SafeStat rates to give carriers an overall inspection rating from 1 to 100. Like your CSA score, the lower the better.
Your ISS Inspection Value is determined by:
- Unsafe Driving
- Hours of Service (HOS)
- Driver Fitness
- Controlled Substances and Alcohol
- Vehicle Maintenance and Cargo
- Hazardous Material
ISS ratings are broken down into three tiers, “inspect, optional, or pass.” Remember, the lower the score, the “safer” the carrier.
- Inspect: 75-100
- Optional: 50-74
- Pass: 1-49
ISS scores can determine how often you’ll get inspected. Though some roadside inspections are based on random selection, most are done as a result of the ISS score, so carriers who have “inspect” or “optional” ratings will be more likely to be inspected. If you want to lower your ISS score, consider the overall safety program of your trucking company. If safety is a primary concern for your company, your scores are likely to fall. (Remember, lower scores are good scores!)
You can find your ISS score by logging into your carrier profile at https://portal.fmcsa.dot.gov/login using your U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)-issued PIN. Log in to your account and you will see the “Company Information” section in the middle of the main screen. Toward the bottom, click the blue panel labeled “Inspection Selection System (ISS) Info.” You’ll also see the ISS Recommendation and the Basis for Recommendation.
For more information on ISS scores and CSA Scores, go to the FMCSA website.
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