How to Correct FMCSA Information Through DataQs

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, or FMCSA, maintains safety information reported by federal and state agencies. Some of that information may appear in a driver's Pre-Employment Screening Program report, commonly called a PSP report.

If you have not reviewed your report yet, begin with our guide, How to Get Your PSP Report.

Ordering your PSP report and challenging information through DataQs are two separate processes:

• Your PSP report shows the FMCSA crash and roadside-inspection information currently associated with you.
• DataQs gives you a way to request a review when you believe specific FMCSA information is incomplete or incorrect.

An individual submission is called a Request for Data Review, or RDR.

DataQs does not make an automatic correction when you file. It routes the request to the government organization responsible for reviewing the information. FMCSA's official DataQs overview explains that the system is used to request and track reviews of federal and state information.

Do not select crash preventability merely because some crash information is incorrect. Likewise, do not select an ordinary crash-data correction when the facts are accurate and your actual concern is whether the crash was preventable.

Your request should identify the particular event you want reviewed.

Collect as much of the following information as you can:

• Type of event: crash or inspection
• State where the event occurred
• Date of the event
• Driver's name and CDL information
• Carrier name and USDOT number
• FMCSA crash report number
• State police accident report number
• Inspection report number
• Citation number, if applicable
• Particular field or violation you believe is wrong

A broad statement such as "This is hurting my job search" does not tell the reviewer what information is wrong.

Organize your explanation around six points:

1. Identify the exact record.
2. State what the record currently shows.
3. State what you believe the correct information should be.
4. Explain why the current information is incorrect or incomplete.
5. Identify the document supporting your explanation.
6. State the particular correction you are requesting.

The second example does not identify a factual error or provide evidence. A reviewer cannot determine from that statement what information is supposedly incorrect.

Under FMCSA's announced 2026 requirements, the person submitting an RDR has the burden of providing factual or legal justification for the requested change. Requests that do not identify a supported error may be closed as insufficient. FMCSA's April 2026 DataQs notice

A CDL or commercial learner's permit holder who is not an owner-operator generally registers as a Driver.

1. Go directly to dataqs.fmcsa.dot.gov.
2. Choose the option to create an account.
3. Select Driver as your user type.
4. Continue to Login.gov.
5. Create a Login.gov account or sign in to an existing account.
6. Set up your Login.gov authentication method.
7. Return to DataQs and complete your driver registration.

Use an email address you monitor regularly because DataQs uses it for account and request notifications.

An owner-operator with a USDOT number generally registers as a Motor Carrier and accesses DataQs through the FMCSA Portal.

FMCSA's illustrated Guide to Registering for DataQs explains the different registration routes.

The screens may vary depending on the request category, but the general process is:

1. Sign in to DataQs.
2. Select Start a New Request.
3. Choose the category that matches the problem.
4. Search for the crash, inspection, or other record.
5. Select the correct record and reason for review.
6. Describe the exact information you believe is wrong.
7. State the correction or review you are requesting.
8. Upload relevant supporting documents.
9. Review your entries carefully.
10. Submit the request.
11. Save the acknowledgement and DataQs Request ID.
12. Download a PDF copy of the submitted request when available.

Do not upload unrelated documents simply to make the submission look larger. The most useful evidence is the material that directly proves or clarifies the particular fact being challenged.

There is no single document package that works for every RDR. Evidence should match the disputed fact.

Supporting documents may be uploaded when you create the request or added later through the Correspondence area. DataQs also provides fax instructions and a barcoded cover sheet inside the request. FMCSA recommends combining multiple pages into one PDF when practical.

FMCSA does not personally decide every DataQs request.

Most requests involving state-reported crashes, roadside inspections, and inspection violations are reviewed by a state DataQs analyst or another responsible state organization. The request is normally routed according to the state where the event occurred.

The analyst may:

• Review the documents you submitted
• Compare the request with the state or FMCSA record
• Contact the issuing officer or inspector
• Seek information from a local agency or court
• Request additional documentation from you
• Forward the request to another organization if it was misrouted

FMCSA employees or federal program offices may review certain federal information. Crash Preventability Determination Program requests and Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse petitions are handled by specially trained FMCSA teams.

When information was originally supplied by a state agency, the responsible state generally must approve the correction. FMCSA's privacy documentation states that FMCSA cannot independently change state records without the state's consent. DOT DataQs Privacy Impact Assessment

A crash can be correctly associated with a driver even when the driver was not cited and did not believe they caused it.

FMCSA crash records generally show crash involvement. The presence of a crash on PSP does not, by itself, decide legal fault.

FMCSA's Crash Preventability Determination Program currently reviews 21 eligible crash types. A police accident report is required. The program may issue one of three results:

• Not Preventable
• Preventable
• Undecided

A Not Preventable determination does not delete the crash. The crash remains visible, but:

• The determination is noted on the driver's PSP.
• The crash is shown separately in FMCSA's Safety Measurement System.
• It is excluded from the carrier's Crash Indicator BASIC calculation.

FMCSA states that a preventability determination does not establish legal liability, fault, or negligence. It is an administrative safety-data determination — not a court judgment. FMCSA's current CPDP information, 2024 Federal Register notice

DataQs does not overturn a traffic citation.

If you want to contest a ticket, you must use the court or administrative process that applies in the jurisdiction where the citation was issued. This article cannot tell you whether or how to contest a particular citation, and it is not legal advice.

If a citation associated with a roadside-inspection violation receives a final adjudicated result, you may be able to submit an RDR with certified court documentation.

For qualifying inspection violations, the result is generally handled as follows:

A dismissal involving a fine, plea agreement, conditions, or other terms may not be treated the same as an unconditional dismissal or a not-guilty result. Submit the complete certified disposition and allow the responsible agency to determine the applicable category.

The underlying inspection may remain available to authorized carrier and enforcement users even when the associated violation is excluded from PSP. It is therefore more accurate to say a violation may be excluded from PSP than to promise that it will be erased everywhere.

FMCSA explains this treatment in its Adjudicated Citations guidance.

After submission, go to:

My DataQs → Monitor an Existing Request

You can search using your Request ID or request status. Open the request details to review:

• Current status
• Assigned agency
• Agency responses
• Correspondence
• Requests for more information
• Uploaded documents
• Final decision

DataQs sends email notifications, but do not rely only on email. Sign in and check the actual request regularly.

If an agency asks for more information, respond as soon as possible and follow the deadline displayed in your request. Different request types may have different deadlines.

For example:

• The current live Help Center says a requester in an ordinary pending-response status may have up to 60 calendar days.
• The Crash Preventability Determination Program currently requires requested documents within 14 days.
• FMCSA's announced revised state process will generally provide 14 days to answer a state request for additional information.

If you miss the applicable deadline, the request may be closed for no response.

As of August 4, 2026, the live DataQs Help Center says that an ordinary RDR may generally be reopened once for reconsideration when the requester has additional supporting information.

To request reconsideration under the current system:

1. Open the RDR details.
2. Select the Correspondence tab.
3. Choose the option requesting another review.
4. Explain why the decision should be reconsidered.
5. Add relevant documentation.
6. Submit the response.

Repeating that you disagree is usually not enough. Address the reason the agency gave for its decision and identify the evidence or factual issue the agency may have missed.

A closed request may show a result such as:

• Data Correction Made
• Citation Results Entered
• No Data Correction Made
• Another request-specific decision

An approved correction must be sent to the appropriate underlying FMCSA or state system. That does not mean it will appear on a new PSP report immediately.

FMCSA says PSP and the Safety Measurement System are updated monthly. A data snapshot is generally taken on the third or last Friday of the month, followed by approximately ten days of processing and validation.

Depending on when the correction was approved, it may not appear until a later monthly update. Keep the DataQs decision and check a later PSP report when appropriate.

Crash preventability determinations follow separate guidance. FMCSA says the determination should appear in PSP and SMS within 60 days after the decision.

A corrected record or Not Preventable notation does not guarantee employment. Individual carriers establish their own hiring qualifications and make their own hiring decisions.

Use the official DataQs address: dataqs.fmcsa.dot.gov

Protect your information by:

• Using your own email address
• Creating a strong Login.gov password
• Protecting your authentication codes
• Adding a backup Login.gov authentication method
• Never giving an employer or recruiter your Login.gov credentials
• Uploading only documents relevant to the request
• Reviewing documents for unrelated medical, financial, or third-party information
• Avoiding public posts containing your full PSP, CDL number, court records, or DataQs screenshots

Some identifying information is necessary for the government to locate and review the record. Documents uploaded to DataQs are made available to the responsible government reviewers.