Lesson 2: Motor Carrier Identification

FMCSA Crash Data Collection Resource Home Page

1. USDOT Numbers

2. Motor Carriers

3. Commerce

4. Carrier Identification

5. Identification Process

10. Examples

Motor Carrier Information:
The information on interstate or intrastate carriers is provided to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which uses the data to target unsafe carriers for more in-depth investigations. Therefore, it is critical to report the correct carrier name, identification number and address.
Identifying Motor Carriers:
Most carriers involved in crashes can be identified by the company name and US DOT Number on the driver's side of the vehicle. At times, in a smaller percentage of the cases, determining the motor carrier and recording this important information can be difficult!

DOT Marking Requirements from CFR 390.21

The vehicle marking must show:
- the legal or single trade name of the company operating the vehicle, and
- the motor carrier identification number, issued by the FMCSA preceded by the letters "USDOT"
If the name of a person other than the operating carrier appears on the vehicle, the name of the operating carrier shall be noted as "operated by."

This vehicle is properly marked. Of note, in a leasing situation a vehicle can have multiple names and/or numbers. This can make it more difficult to record the information accurately for the responsible carrier.