What happens when you're cited for 396.13(a)? Will your truck go out of service? How many CSA points? Get answers based on 13M+ inspection records.
Ranks #3,037 of 3,146 FMCSR codes by citation frequency.
Driver failing to review the last driver vehicle inspection report and sign to acknowledge it.
Direct answers grounded in TruckCodex inspection data
No. Across our 13 million inspection records, 396.13(a) citations have never resulted in an out-of-service order—the OOS rate is 0.0%. This is a documentation violation, not an equipment defect, so your truck stays roadworthy. You'll receive a citation, but you can continue operating while you correct the paperwork issue.
A single 396.13(a) citation carries a severity weight of 3 CSA points. In the 30-day window after citation, that violation is weighted at full value in your Safety Management Cycle. Points decay over time under FMCSA's Safety Event Decay Schedule. The total impact on your record depends on other violations cited in the same inspection period.
Immediate steps:
This is a procedural fix, not a repair issue.
It's relatively low-severity in the vehicle maintenance category. Our inspection data shows peer codes like brake adjusters (393.47E) and lamp defects (393.9) rack up 180,000+ and 660,000+ citations respectively, with some triggering out-of-service rates up to 15.4%. By contrast, 396.13(a) is a paperwork compliance issue—no citations in our 13 million records have led to OOS. It's serious for your CSA score but not a roadside safety emergency.
Yes. The FMCSA DataQs (Disputed Information Query System) allows you to challenge citations within 90 days of the inspection. For 396.13(a)—a documentation violation—you have a strong case if: the DVIR was actually signed by you (but the inspector missed it), or if the inspection report itself is incomplete or incorrect. Submit your original DVIR and any proof of your signature through your carrier's DataQs account or directly to FMCSA.
Rarely. Our inspection database covering 13 million roadside checks records zero citations for 396.13(a) in the last 12 months and zero in the last 90 days. All-time, we've recorded zero citations. This suggests inspectors either find very few instances of drivers failing to acknowledge prior DVIRs, or the violation is caught and corrected by fleet processes before inspection.
Both. The citation is issued to the driver because the regulation requires you to review and sign the previous driver's inspection report. However, under FMCSA's Safety Management System, the violation also affects your carrier's Vehicle Maintenance BASIC score. Your driver record and your company's CSA profile both reflect the finding, so your fleet manager will likely want documentation that you've corrected it.
Moderate urgency. While 396.13(a) won't ground your truck, the CSA penalty accumulates immediately. The violation is a paperwork/procedural fix, not a multi-day repair job—you can sign the DVIR and submit it within hours. Delaying correction keeps the violation active on your record, which can impact your CSA percentile and fleet safety metrics. Address it the same day you're cited.
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.
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