Your crew trucks are commercial vehicles. Your drivers need files.
A construction company isn't a trucking company, but the federal driver qualification rules don't care what you sell. If a vehicle meets the weight threshold and crosses state lines for the job, the person driving it needs a complete driver file.
Free: see your roadside record and MCS-150 due date from FMCSA’s public data.
Does this apply to you?
A driver needs a federal driver file when all three are true:
- 1The vehicle meets the weight thresholdGross vehicle or combination weight rating, or actual weight, of 10,001 lbs or more, whichever is greater. 49 CFR 390.5
- 2It's used in interstate commerceCrossing a state line, or an in-state leg of trade that starts or ends out of state. 49 CFR 390.5
- 3They drive it for your businessPart 391 covers anyone who drives a commercial motor vehicle for a motor carrier, full-time or not. 49 CFR 391.1
Purely intrastate? Many states apply the same rules with changes; confirm with your state.
Vehicles to check
Compare each one’s ratings against 10,001 lbs:
- Dump trucks and roll-off trucks
- Lowboys and equipment trailers
- Pickups towing skid-steers, mini-excavators or material trailers
- Water trucks, mixers and service bodies
The rating counts, not just the load
49 CFR 390.5 uses the gross vehicle or combination weight rating or the actual weight, whichever is greater. A pickup and trailer rated at 10,001 lbs or more combined can count even when the trailer is light. Check the ratings on the door-jamb and trailer stickers.
No CDL doesn't mean no driver file
A CDL is required at 26,001 lbs (49 CFR 383.5). Driver qualification files start at 10,001 lbs (49 CFR 390.5 and 391.1). Plenty of equipment haulers fall between the two.
What every driver file must hold
11 records per driver across two separate files plus related obligations. A missing or incomplete required record is a recordkeeping violation: up to $1,584 per day and $15,846 per violation (49 CFR Part 386, Appendix B).
Driver Qualification File
49 CFR 391.51
- Application for employment · At hire
- Motor vehicle record — at hire · At hire
- Road test certificate or equivalent · Once
- Motor vehicle record — annual inquiry · Every 12 months
- Note of annual review of driving record · Every 12 months
- Medical examiner's certificate · Expires — up to 24 months
Driver Investigation History File
49 CFR 391.53
- Driver's written authorization · At hire
- Previous employer responses · Within 30 days of hire
Related obligations
49 CFR Parts 380 & 382
- Pre-employment drug & alcohol test result · At hire
- Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse query · Pre-employment, then annually
- Entry-level driver training certificate · Once
We build the files for you
$999 one-time Audit-Ready Setup for construction companies with up to 30 drivers, with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Then $8 per driver per month ( $79 minimum) to track every expiry date.
We only work inside our state. Do the federal rules apply?
The federal rules apply to interstate commerce, which includes in-state trips that are part of trade starting or ending out of state (49 CFR 390.5). Many states apply the same driver file rules to intrastate carriers, sometimes with changes, so confirm with your state.
Our foremen drive the trucks part-time. Do they need files?
Part 391 covers people who drive commercial motor vehicles for a motor carrier (49 CFR 391.1). Job title doesn't change that; whether the vehicle they drive is a CMV does.
Other industries
General information, not legal advice. Rules cited are from Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations; exceptions and state rules can change what applies to your operation.