SMARTWAY EXPRESS INC
USDOT 3525590MC-Docket MC1171810JOLIET, IL
Do not tender20 power units
SMARTWAY EXPRESS INC (USDOT 3525590) in JOLIET, IL — carries a hard disqualifier. FMCSA authority, fleet size, BASIC safety measures, crash and inspection history.
- Has active operating authority that's tenderable today (common or contract).
- Authority revocation is currently pending — carrier may lose operating authority soon.
- Not under an uncleared federal out-of-service or safety action.
- BIPD on file is $750,000 — below your $1,000,000 floor (federal general-freight minimum is $750,000).
- No cargo insurance on file. Required for many shipper contracts.
- 1 prior insurance lapse(s) on record, most recent began 2023-11-25 — the carrier let required coverage lapse before.
- Unrated by FMCSA. Most carriers are unrated — unrated is not the same as unsafe.
- No BASIC alerts in any of the five public SMS categories.
- Vehicle out-of-service rate is above the national roadside average.
- 2 preventable crash(es) in the last 24 months; recordable crash rate 0.
- No fatal crashes in the last 24 months.
- No link to a prior revoked authority.
- Crash Indicator and Hazmat Compliance BASICs are statutorily withheld from public SMS under the FAST Act — their absence is not a clean record; use the crash-risk signals above instead.
Built from FMCSA's public Safety Management System data — guidance, not legal advice. Verify directly with the carrier and your cargo policy before tendering.
Authority
- Common authority
- Active
- Contract authority
- Not applicable
Safety & BASIC scorecard
BASIC safety measures
Unsafe driving
No alert
measure 4.39
Hours of service
No alert
measure 0.02
Driver fitness
No alert
measure 0.13
Controlled substance
No alert
measure 0
Vehicle maintenance
No alert
measure 4
Under the FAST Act, FMCSA publishes an absolute per-category measure (not a 0–100 percentile) for these five BASICs — the alert flag, not the raw number, is the risk signal. The Crash Indicator and Hazmat Compliance BASICs are statutorily withheld from public view.
Last 24 months
0
Fatalities
1
Injuries
3
Crashes
63
Inspections
8
OOS inspections
12
OOS violations
Insurance
- BIPD on file
- $750,000 below $1M baseline
- Cargo insurance
- No
- Bond on file
- No
Fleet
- Power units
- 20
- Total drivers
- 26
- Years in business
- 6
- Hazmat authority
- No
Crash risk
- Preventable crashes (24 mo)
- 2 of 3 total crash(es)
- Recordable crash rate
- 0
- Driver OOS rate
- 1.6%
- Vehicle OOS rate
- 28%Above national
The official Crash Indicator BASIC is withheld from public SMS under the FAST Act — these derived signals stand in for it; their absence is not a clean record.
Compliance & history
- Reincarnation / chameleon
- No prior revoked authority
- Involuntary revocations
- None on file
- Physical address
- No address flags
- Federal OOS / safety action
- None on file
- MCS-150 self-report
- 2026-04-30
- Insurance lapse history
- 1 lapse(s) most recent 2023-11-25
- Last compliance review
- None on file
Inspection history (all-time)
74
Inspections
10
OOS inspections
94
Violations
16
OOS violations
1
Post-accident
Record spans 2023-06-26 → 2026-05-27.
Crash history (last 24 months)
2026-03-06
IL
Tow-away
2026-02-01
MS
Tow-away
2025-01-24
MO
1 injuredTow-away
Violation pattern (all-time, by area)
| Area (49 CFR part) | Violations | Out of service | Most recent |
|---|---|---|---|
Unsafe driving 392
|
49 | 1 | 2026-05-03 |
Vehicle parts & maintenance 393
|
26 | 13 | 2026-04-22 |
Vehicle inspection & repair 396
|
3 | 0 | 2025-08-06 |
Driver qualifications 391
|
1 | 1 | 2025-08-23 |
CDL standards 383
|
1 | 0 | 2026-03-10 |
Hours of service 395
|
1 | 0 | 2025-11-18 |
Recent violations (last 24 months, worst first)
| Date | Category | Violation | OOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-03-12 | Unsafe Driving | State/Local Laws - Failed to obey a traffic control device - Permanent or Temporary - e.g. safety official signal sign l | — |
| 2026-03-11 | Unsafe Driving | State/Local Laws - Speeding 6-10 miles per hour over the speed limit | — |
| 2026-02-26 | Unsafe Driving | State/Local Laws - Speeding 6-10 miles per hour over the speed limit | — |
| 2026-02-11 | Vehicle Maintenance | Tires - All others leaking or inflation less than 50% of the maximum inflation pressure on tire not equipped with ATIS | OOS |
| 2025-12-26 | Vehicle Maintenance | Tires - All others leaking or inflation less than 50% of the maximum inflation pressure on tire not equipped with ATIS | OOS |
| 2025-11-19 | Vehicle Maintenance | No or Defective ABS Malfunction Indicator Lamp for trailer manufactured after 03/01/1998 | — |
| 2025-11-18 | Hours-of-Service Compliance | HOS (ELD) - A portable ELD is not mounted in a fixed position and visible to the driver when seated in the normal drivin | — |
| 2025-10-06 | Vehicle Maintenance | Lighting - Projecting load - Any Lamp on projecting load missing when required to be on. | OOS |
| 2025-08-23 | Driver Fitness | License - Endorsement - Operate a CMV without proper endorsement | OOS |
| 2025-08-23 | Vehicle Maintenance | Air Brake - ABS malfunction lamp defective on truck-tractor manufactured on or after March 1 2001 for towed vehicle. | — |
| 2025-08-23 | Vehicle Maintenance | Lighting - Side marker lamp(s) inoperative | — |
| 2025-08-06 | Unsafe Driving | Driver - Failed to use seat belt while operating a CMV. | — |
| 2025-08-06 | Unsafe Driving | State/Local Laws - Failed to obey a traffic control device - Permanent or Temporary - e.g. safety official signal sign l | — |
| 2025-08-06 | Vehicle Maintenance | Air Brake - ABS malfunction lamp defective on trailers manufactured on or after March 1 1998 | — |
| 2025-08-06 | Vehicle Maintenance | Hubs - Leaking hub | — |
| 2025-07-15 | Unsafe Driving | State/Local Laws - Speeding 11-14 miles per hour over the speed limit | — |
| 2025-07-07 | Vehicle Maintenance | Operating a CMV without documentation of a periodic inspection | — |
| 2025-06-18 | Unsafe Driving | State/Local Laws - Speeding 6-10 miles per hour over the speed limit | — |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Heavy Vehicles/Equipment - Improper securement of accessory equipment or articulated vehicles | OOS |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Brake - Drum or rotor (disc) missing or in danger of falling away | OOS |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Coupling - A crack or gap caused by corrosion that is 1/8 inch or more in width | OOS |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Tires - All others weight carried exceeds tire load limit | OOS |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Drum Brake - Inoperative other than a steering axle | — |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Air Brake - ABS malfunction lamp defective on trailers manufactured on or after March 1 1998 | — |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Wheel/Rim - Wheel fasteners loose/missing/ineffective/broken. | OOS |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Air Brake - Hose/tubing damaged or not secured | — |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Cargo - Loose or unfastened tiedown | — |
| 2025-06-12 | Vehicle Maintenance | Driver - Failing to reexamine the CMV's cargo and its load securement devices during the course of transportation and ma | — |
| 2025-04-10 | Vehicle Maintenance | Flag - Required flag(s) - any missing flag on a projecting load when more than one is required | — |
| 2025-02-09 | Vehicle Maintenance | Tires - All others leaking in tread area and inflation less than 50% of the maximum inflation pressure on tire equipped | OOS |
| 2025-02-09 | Vehicle Maintenance | Lighting - Stop lamps - Both inoperative when required to be on | OOS |
| 2025-02-09 | Vehicle Maintenance | Lighting - Identification lamp(s) inoperative | — |
| 2024-11-25 | Vehicle Maintenance | Cargo - Cargo not secured to prevent leaking/spilling/blowing/falling from CMV | OOS |
| 2024-10-02 | Vehicle Maintenance | Lighting - Stop lamps - Any inoperative. | — |
Recent inspections (with violations, newest first)
Showing the 25 most-recent inspections that had violations. Clean inspections aren't listed here — they're counted in the all-time inspection totals above.
2026-05-03 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLED | — | — |
2026-04-23 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLL | — | — |
2026-04-22 1 viol· 1 OOS
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicle parts & maintenance 393 | 75A3-TAOL | OOS | — |
2026-04-11 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2RG | — | — |
2026-03-27 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 9A3 | — | — |
2026-03-12 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLTCD | — | — |
2026-03-11 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLS2 | — | — |
2026-03-10 2 viols
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLL | — | — |
| CDL standards 383 | 71C-LCDL | — | — |
2026-03-04 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLL | — | — |
2026-02-26 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLS2 | — | — |
2026-02-16 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLL | — | — |
2026-02-11 2 viols· 1 OOS
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLTL | — | — |
| Vehicle parts & maintenance 393 | 75A3-TAOL | OOS | — |
2026-02-08 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLL | — | — |
2026-01-23 2 viols
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2W | — | — |
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2DIM | — | — |
2025-12-29 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLED | — | — |
2025-12-26 1 viol· 1 OOS
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicle parts & maintenance 393 | 75A3-TAOL | OOS | — |
2025-12-23 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLTL | — | — |
2025-12-06 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLL | — | — |
2025-11-19 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicle parts & maintenance 393 | 55E | — | — |
2025-11-18 7 viols
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hours of service 395 | 22G-ELDMFV | — | — |
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLTL | — | — |
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLTL | — | — |
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLTL | — | — |
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLED | — | — |
| Vehicle parts & maintenance 393 | 87A-FPLA | — | — |
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLTL | — | — |
2025-10-28 2 viols
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLEWA2 | — | — |
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLEWA3 | — | — |
2025-10-06 1 viol· 1 OOS
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicle parts & maintenance 393 | 11A1-LPLMWR | OOS | — |
2025-08-31 1 viol
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLL | — | — |
2025-08-23 4 viols· 1 OOS
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLED | — | — |
| Vehicle parts & maintenance 393 | 55D2-B | — | — |
| Vehicle parts & maintenance 393 | 9A-LSML | — | — |
| Driver qualifications 391 | 11B5-LNCDLNVE | OOS | — |
2025-08-06 4 viols
| Area (part) | Section | OOS | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLTCD | — | — |
| Unsafe driving 392 | 2-SLLED | — | — |
| Vehicle inspection & repair 396 | 5-HL | — | — |
| Vehicle parts & maintenance 393 | 55E-B | — | — |
Verify on FMCSA
FMCSA is the system of record. One click through to the official source.