What happens when you're cited for using a hand-held phone while driving? Direct answers on OOS rates, CSA points, and next steps from 13M+ inspection records.
Ranks #958 of 3,146 FMCSR codes by citation frequency • OOS rate of 0.0% is below the FMCSR-wide average of 33.3%.
Driving a commercial motor vehicle while Texting
Direct answers grounded in TruckCodex inspection data
No. Across our inspection records, 392.80A citations have never resulted in an out-of-service order—the OOS rate is 0.0%. All 465 all-time citations in our database resulted in a citation only, not a vehicle removal. This is significantly lower than the 31.4% average OOS rate across all FMCSR codes, making this one of the least-likely violations to trigger immediate roadside removal.
A single 392.80A citation carries a severity weight of 7 CSA points. The actual points added to your Safety Management System depends on your carrier's crash history and other violations within your 30-day window. While 7 points is moderate on the severity scale, the cumulative effect across multiple citations or co-occurring violations (like fatigue or equipment defects) will increase your total BASIC scores more significantly.
Immediately after citation:
Compared to peer violations in the Unsafe Driving category, 392.80A is less severe by enforcement frequency. While similar codes like 392.2 (ill or fatigued) have logged over 1.2 million citations with a 0.8% OOS rate, 392.80A has 465 all-time citations with a 0.0% OOS rate. This suggests inspectors cite phone use less frequently and never as grounds for vehicle removal. However, the 7-point severity weight still impacts your CSA record—don't minimize it, but know it's unlikely to result in immediate operational disruption.
Yes, you can file a DataQs (FMCSA DataQuality System) RDR (Request for Data Review) for any 392.80A citation. The process depends on your argument: if you contest the finding as a documentation or procedural error (e.g., the inspector misidentified your vehicle or phone use), include evidence. If the officer directly observed phone use, contestation is harder—visual violations require eyewitness refutation. Submit your RDR within 90 days of the citation for fastest resolution. Your carrier's compliance team can assist with the filing.
Our inspection records show 392.80A citations are concentrated in three states (last 180 days): Iowa leads with 64 citations, Texas follows with 39, and Illinois with 3. Iowa's citation rate is notably higher than other regions, suggesting either stricter enforcement of phone-use rules or higher incidence on those highways. If you operate regularly in Iowa, be especially mindful of hand-held phone use during pre-trip and en route.
In the last 12 months, citations have remained relatively stable, ranging from 13 to 33 per month. May 2026 saw a spike to 33 citations, but the trend has not dramatically escalated. February 2026 also showed 29 citations, suggesting seasonal or operational variation rather than a sustained crackdown. Over the last 90 days, citations averaged roughly 16–17 per month—consistent with the annual average of about 21 per month—so this violation is not becoming significantly more common.
Freightliner trucks (FRHT) dominate the citation data with 159 all-time citations, followed by utility vehicles (UTIL) with 68, and Volvo (VOLV) with 58. Freightliner's high count likely reflects its prevalence in the trucking fleet overall. This distribution tells you that phone-use enforcement is happening across all major manufacturer categories—there's no safe brand. The violation is cited uniformly regardless of truck type, so driver behavior, not equipment, is the determining factor.
Where 392.80A is most commonly cited (last 180 days)
Other violations commonly found on the same inspection (last 90 days)
TruckCodex aggregates official public-sector datasets. See the Source registry for dataset-level coverage and the Freshness log for last-import timestamps.
Census, SAFER, SMS, Licensing & Insurance (L&I), roadside inspections, crashes, and authority history.
Vehicle recall campaigns, defect investigations, and consumer safety complaints (SCRS).
Cross-border carrier registry and Canadian recall campaigns where applicable.
TruckCodex is an independent aggregator; it is not affiliated with FMCSA, NHTSA, EIA, or Transport Canada. Always verify compliance-critical information directly with the originating agency.