COMPLIANCE
SMS BASIC Score
A percentile score assigned by the FMCSA's Safety Measurement System rating a carrier's safety performance across seven behavioral categories.
SMS BASIC stands for Safety Measurement System Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories. It is a scoring framework used by the FMCSA to evaluate motor carrier safety performance based on roadside inspection data, violation history, and crash records. BASIC scores are expressed as percentile rankings (0–100) within a peer group of carriers with similar operation types and mileage.
The seven BASIC categories are: (1) Unsafe Driving — speeding, reckless driving, improper lane changes; (2) Hours-of-Service (HOS) Compliance — logbook violations, driving beyond legal limits; (3) Driver Fitness — unlicensed drivers, medical certification violations; (4) Controlled Substances/Alcohol — drug and alcohol violations; (5) Vehicle Maintenance — brake defects, tire violations, lights; (6) Hazardous Materials Compliance — placarding, loading, and documentation violations; (7) Crash Indicator — crash frequency and severity relative to peer carriers.
Higher percentile scores indicate worse relative performance. An Unsafe Driving score of 80 means the carrier performs worse than 80% of comparable carriers — a red flag. FMCSA uses BASIC thresholds (typically 65–75% depending on category) to prioritize carriers for roadside interventions and compliance reviews. Carriers with scores above the alert threshold in multiple categories are at elevated risk of enforcement action and may have insurance carriers increase their premiums or impose coverage restrictions.
DrayLocator displays SMS BASIC scores on carrier profiles where available, pulled from FMCSA SAFER data. When evaluating drayage carriers, prioritize carriers with low BASIC scores (under 40%) across Unsafe Driving and Vehicle Maintenance — the two categories most predictive of operational reliability and cargo claim risk.