FMCSR 390.35(b): False Entries in Records—Q&A

Yes—very likely. Across our inspection records, 390.35(b) citations result in an out-of-service rate of 97.6%, meaning nearly all trucks cited for this violation are placed out of service immediately. This is far higher than the all-FMCSR average OOS rate of 31.4%. The violation involves making or causing false entries in reports or records, which inspectors treat as a critical safety and compliance issue that warrants immediate removal from service.

This violation carries a CSA severity weight of 10 points. The 30-day rolling multiplier means if you receive multiple violations within 30 days, each point value is multiplied by the count of violations in that window. A single 390.35(b) citation will add 10 points to your Safety and Fitness Electronic Records (SAFER) profile immediately. This directly affects your company's CSA BASIC scores and potential safety audit triggers.

Immediate steps:

1. Accept the out-of-service order. Our data shows 97.6% of these citations result in OOS placement, so expect your truck to be removed from service.
2. Document everything. Secure copies of the inspection report, the specific entry or record in question, and any context explaining how the entry was made.
3. Contact your fleet safety manager or carrier immediately. False entry violations are serious; your carrier needs to know and may need to report to corporate compliance.
4. Do not operate the vehicle until repairs or corrective documentation is verified by an authorized inspector.
5. Consider a DataQs challenge if you believe the entry was not false or was made in error, not with intent to defraud.

Yes—390.35(b) is significantly more serious. While peer codes in the general/administrative category, such as 390.21(a) (vehicle marking) and 390.21(b) (USDOT number display), have 0.0% out-of-service rates and hundreds of thousands of citations, 390.35(b) has a 97.6% OOS rate with only 85 all-time citations. The rarity and severity of this violation indicate inspectors reserve it for clear, documented instances of intentional falsification. This is in a different enforcement tier than routine documentation or marking violations.

Yes. You can file a DataQs challenge to contest the citation through FMCSA's Roadside Data Quality System. DataQs is designed for drivers and carriers to flag inaccurate, incomplete, or ambiguous records. For a false-entry violation, a successful challenge typically requires evidence that:

• The entry was made in good faith and not intentionally false
• There was clerical or administrative error, not fraud
• Documentation supports your version of the facts

Contact your carrier's compliance team or your FMCSA Field Service Center for guidance on filing within the 90-day DataQs window from the citation date.

Enforcement is rare. Our database of 13 million inspections shows only 85 all-time citations for 390.35(b), making it rank #1472 out of 3,036 FMCSR codes by citation volume. In the last 12 months and last 90 days, there have been 0 citations, indicating this violation is cited only in exceptional circumstances when inspectors identify clear, documented false entries in driver logs, vehicle records, or maintenance reports. This rarity underscores the severity when it does occur.

Across our inspection records, Freightliner (FRHT) trucks account for 10 citations, followed by International (INTL) and Ford with 5 each. No single carrier dominates; the top cited carrier, SEAN REAL ESTATE SERVICE LLC (USDOT 2538666), has only 2 citations all-time. The geographic and carrier distribution is too sparse to identify a clear pattern, which reflects how rarely this violation is cited. The violation is enforcement-agnostic—what matters is the false entry itself, not the vehicle make or carrier.

Both. The violation appears on your CSA BASIC driving record and on your carrier's CSA profile. FMCSA tracks violations at both the driver and carrier level. Your carrier's Unsafe Driving and Vehicle Maintenance BASICs can be impacted, which affects their safety rating and audit risk. As a driver, the citation stays on your record and counts toward your personal Safety and Fitness scores. If you change carriers, the citation follows you. Your new employer will see it during background checks and hiring review.