{
  "schema_version": "citation-answer/v1",
  "answer_key": "dot-roadside-inspection-levels",
  "artifact_slug": "dot-roadside-inspection-levels",
  "query": "dot inspection",
  "citation_slots": 3,
  "canonical_path": "/guides/dot-roadside-inspection-levels",
  "title": "What happens during a DOT inspection?",
  "description": "The eight current CVSA roadside-inspection levels and limits.",
  "answer_capsule": "A DOT roadside inspection is a structured commercial-vehicle examination using 8 current CVSA levels, I through VIII. CVSA's All Inspection Levels page, accessed 2026-07-21, is the named source. The FMCSA 2026-06-25 aggregate records 3,102,000 inspections; an out-of-service event is an inspection outcome, not a carrier risk score.",
  "scope": "This guide explains the current eight CVSA levels and points to official definitions. It does not predict an inspection outcome or rate a carrier or driver.",
  "methodology_version": "citation-answer/v1",
  "reproducibility_note": "Re-derive this answer from the named source and dated scope; no Fonteum account is required.",
  "limitations": [
    "FMCSA datasets can emphasize a narrower level subset than the current CVSA page.",
    "This aggregate public-record answer is not a consumer report, person-level dossier, eligibility decision, or risk score."
  ],
  "related_links": [
    {
      "label": "Carrier census by state",
      "href": "/carriers/states"
    }
  ],
  "data_as_of": "2026-07-21",
  "source_artifacts": [
    {
      "source_key": "cvsa-inspection-levels",
      "kind": "upstream",
      "file_name": "All Inspection Levels",
      "file_url": "https://cvsa.org/inspections/all-inspection-levels/",
      "publisher": "Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance",
      "published_date": null,
      "retrieved_date": "2026-07-21",
      "data_as_of": "2026-07-21",
      "sha256": null
    },
    {
      "source_key": "fmcsa-inspections-2026-06-25",
      "kind": "fonteum-derived",
      "file_name": "fmcsa-unsafe-carriers.json",
      "file_url": "/gov/research/fmcsa-unsafe-carriers-2026/fmcsa-unsafe-carriers.json",
      "creator": "Fonteum LLC",
      "generated_date": "2026-06-25",
      "published_date": "2026-06-25",
      "data_as_of": "2026-06-25",
      "sha256": "539bd0a2f2f638d46cec0b4cfbc4f005163edef48d860004a28e63a2159ba77b",
      "is_based_on": {
        "source_key": "fmcsa-inspections-2026-06-25",
        "name": "Vehicle Inspection File",
        "publisher": "Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration",
        "official_url": "https://data.transportation.gov/Trucking-and-Motorcoaches/Vehicle-Inspection-File/fx4q-ay7w",
        "source_date_kind": "snapshot",
        "source_date": "2026-06-25"
      }
    }
  ],
  "published_date": "2026-07-21",
  "modified_date": "2026-07-21",
  "sources": [
    {
      "source_key": "cvsa-inspection-levels",
      "name": "All Inspection Levels",
      "publisher": "Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance",
      "official_url": "https://cvsa.org/inspections/all-inspection-levels/",
      "source_date_kind": "accessed",
      "source_date": "2026-07-21",
      "limitation": "CVSA currently describes Levels I through VIII. Dataset fields and inspection programs can cover narrower subsets, and an inspection outcome is not a carrier risk score.",
      "retrieved_date": "2026-07-21"
    },
    {
      "source_key": "fmcsa-inspections-2026-06-25",
      "name": "Vehicle Inspection File",
      "publisher": "Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration",
      "official_url": "https://data.transportation.gov/Trucking-and-Motorcoaches/Vehicle-Inspection-File/fx4q-ay7w",
      "source_date_kind": "snapshot",
      "source_date": "2026-06-25",
      "limitation": "The committed projection contains multi-year administrative inspection rows. Counts are not unique carriers, annual rates, present inspection outcomes, or normalized risk measures.",
      "retrieved_date": "2026-06-25",
      "retained_artifact": {
        "kind": "fonteum-derived",
        "file_name": "fmcsa-unsafe-carriers.json",
        "file_url": "/gov/research/fmcsa-unsafe-carriers-2026/fmcsa-unsafe-carriers.json",
        "creator": "Fonteum LLC",
        "generated_date": "2026-06-25",
        "published_date": "2026-06-25",
        "data_as_of": "2026-06-25",
        "sha256": "539bd0a2f2f638d46cec0b4cfbc4f005163edef48d860004a28e63a2159ba77b",
        "is_based_on": {
          "source_key": "fmcsa-inspections-2026-06-25",
          "name": "Vehicle Inspection File",
          "publisher": "Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration",
          "official_url": "https://data.transportation.gov/Trucking-and-Motorcoaches/Vehicle-Inspection-File/fx4q-ay7w",
          "source_date_kind": "snapshot",
          "source_date": "2026-06-25"
        }
      }
    }
  ],
  "facts": [
    {
      "fact_key": "levels",
      "label": "Current CVSA inspection levels",
      "value": "8: Levels I through VIII",
      "source": {
        "source_key": "cvsa-inspection-levels",
        "name": "All Inspection Levels",
        "publisher": "Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance",
        "official_url": "https://cvsa.org/inspections/all-inspection-levels/",
        "source_date_kind": "accessed",
        "source_date": "2026-07-21",
        "limitation": "CVSA currently describes Levels I through VIII. Dataset fields and inspection programs can cover narrower subsets, and an inspection outcome is not a carrier risk score.",
        "retrieved_date": "2026-07-21"
      }
    },
    {
      "fact_key": "inspections",
      "label": "FMCSA aggregate inspection rows",
      "value": "3,102,000",
      "source": {
        "source_key": "fmcsa-inspections-2026-06-25",
        "name": "Vehicle Inspection File",
        "publisher": "Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration",
        "official_url": "https://data.transportation.gov/Trucking-and-Motorcoaches/Vehicle-Inspection-File/fx4q-ay7w",
        "source_date_kind": "snapshot",
        "source_date": "2026-06-25",
        "limitation": "The committed projection contains multi-year administrative inspection rows. Counts are not unique carriers, annual rates, present inspection outcomes, or normalized risk measures.",
        "retrieved_date": "2026-06-25",
        "retained_artifact": {
          "kind": "fonteum-derived",
          "file_name": "fmcsa-unsafe-carriers.json",
          "file_url": "/gov/research/fmcsa-unsafe-carriers-2026/fmcsa-unsafe-carriers.json",
          "creator": "Fonteum LLC",
          "generated_date": "2026-06-25",
          "published_date": "2026-06-25",
          "data_as_of": "2026-06-25",
          "sha256": "539bd0a2f2f638d46cec0b4cfbc4f005163edef48d860004a28e63a2159ba77b",
          "is_based_on": {
            "source_key": "fmcsa-inspections-2026-06-25",
            "name": "Vehicle Inspection File",
            "publisher": "Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration",
            "official_url": "https://data.transportation.gov/Trucking-and-Motorcoaches/Vehicle-Inspection-File/fx4q-ay7w",
            "source_date_kind": "snapshot",
            "source_date": "2026-06-25"
          }
        }
      }
    }
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "question": "How many CVSA inspection levels are current?",
      "answer": "CVSA currently lists eight, Levels I through VIII."
    },
    {
      "question": "Is an out-of-service event a carrier score?",
      "answer": "No. It is an outcome tied to an inspection record."
    }
  ]
}