What is an MVR?

Amotor vehicle record (MVR) is a state-issued report detailing an individual’s driving record. Some refer to it as a driver abstract.

States are required, as part of their commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) programs, to share and receive data from the federal CDL database, Commercial Driver’s License Information System (CDLIS). The state’s MVR includes any data entered on the driver’s record through CDLIS. As a result, the report provided by the state on CDL holders is often called a CDLIS MVR.

MVRs are a critical piece of the driver qualification process. Anyone hired to operate a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) as defined in §390.5, which includes both CDL and non-CDL vehicle types, is subject to the recordkeeping requirement.

Motor carriers are required to obtain an MVR covering the previous three years for each new driver they employ, and then update the record every 12 months during employment.

For the initial 3-year MVR, a request must be sent to every state in which the driver held a license or permit during the last three years. A copy of each state’s record must be:

• Placed in the driver’s qualification (DQ) file within 30 days of his or her employment date (this window can be shorter for CDL drivers, see their MVR requirements below), and
• Kept until three years after the driver’s employment ends.

The regulations also require a motor carrier to obtain and review an MVR on each driver annually, covering the previous 12 months. Each annual MVR and the note documenting the annual review can be removed from the driver’s qualification file after three years.

For interstate CDL holders whose MVR includes medical certification information, when accepting the driver's current medical certification which was likely issued more than 15 days prior, the MVR must be obtained before the driver operates a CMV, to prove that the driver is physically qualified.

The CDL MVR:

• Must be obtained every time the driver’s medical certification status changes;
• Must be secured within 15 days following the driver’s medical exam; and
• May be used to satisfy the initial or annual MVR requirements (serves a dual purpose).

But the MVR is more than just a regulatory obligation. The MVR offers the motor carrier a glimpse into the behaviors of the driver since past behaviors are often an indicator of future performance. The way a driver handles vehicles — personal and commercial — is often revealed through a review of his or her driving record.

A motor carrier’s hiring and safety policies should set standards as they relate to the MVR. Scoring traffic convictions is one way to objectively rule out a candidate or require a current driver to go through coaching or refresher training. The severity of a conviction, frequency of citations, and how long ago a traffic conviction occurred are often included in this decision-making.

FMCSA offers, not requires, the Pre-employment screening program (PSP) report. If used as a best practice at the cost of around ten dollars or less, the PSP report may offer additional information when vetting drivers at hire.

MVRs and PSP reports have some key differences. The PSP:

• Includes data from all CDL numbers a driver has held for the past 5 years, while the MVR includes only data from the current CDL issue by that state.
• Includes the original violation regardless of whether it resulted in a different conviction, while MVRs only show events resulting in a conviction.
• Includes a driver’s five-year crash history and three-year roadside inspection history, while the MVR includes only convictions in a given state and not warnings, citations, and tickets yet to be settled in court.

For additional insights into MVRs and other driver qualification requirements, download our free whitepaper "Expert Answers to Common Driver Qualification Questions".