Overdrive Staff
It didn’t take long for the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance to highlight one of its newest out-of-service violations.
Earlier this week, the alliance of state/federal enforcement and industry announced false-log violations as a result of ELD tampering will be an out-of-service violation, effective April Fool’s Day, citing 49 CFR 395.8(e)(2).
On Thursday, CVSA announced its annual International Roadcheck inspection blitz will be held May 12-14 and place special emphasis on ELD tampering, falsification or manipulation.
During the three-day Roadcheck, inspectors at weigh/inspection stations and pop-up inspection sites primarily conduct the North American Standard Level I Inspection, a 37-step procedure that includes two major parts — an examination of the driver’s operating requirements and an assessment of the vehicle’s mechanical fitness.
For the driver portion of the inspection, inspectors check the driver’s qualifications, license, record of duty status, medical examiner’s certificate, seat belt usage, skill performance evaluation certificate (if applicable), and status in the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse (in the U.S.).
Inspectors also look for signs of alcohol and/or drug impairment.
For the vehicle portion, it’s more than just the biggies: Lights, tires and brakes. Inspectors assess a whole host of components from the coupling devices and driveline/driveshaft components to the driver’s seat and securement of cargo.
Other mechanical components inspected include fuel and exhaust systems, frames, steering mechanisms, suspensions, wheels, rims, hubs and windshield wipers.
A vehicle that successfully passes a Level I or V Inspection without any critical vehicle inspection item violations may receive a CVSA decal, which is valid for up to three months. A valid decal signals to commercial motor vehicle enforcement personnel that the vehicle was recently inspected and did not have out-of-service violations.
For the emphasis on ELD tampering, during Roadcheck inspectors will review the driver’s record of duty status as usual and check for false or manipulated entries, with a focus on ELD tampering.
Inaccurate ELD entries may result from a driver’s lack of understanding of the federal regulations and exemptions, CVSA noted, but in some cases, inaccurate entries are purposefully used to conceal hours-of-service violations, and some records are manipulated to conceal driving time (with no indication the record was edited as required by federal regulations).
Last year, falsification of record of duty status was the second most-cited driver violation, according to CVSA. The false logs violations saw a sizable uptick in issuance last year, according to Overdrive/RigDig analysis published earlier this week.
During Roadcheck in 2025, “false logs” was the No. 4 overall driver violation, and five out of the top 10 driver violations were related to hours of service or ELDs.
Where’s violation risk most likely? It’s instructive to review the intensity of focus individual states’ inspectors put on the hours of service violation category, generally. The map below, charting Overdrive sister company RigDig analysis, illustrates which states issued the most HOS violations as part of their total mix — where the likelihood of hours attention is high.
The vehicle focus for this year’s Roadcheck is improper/inadequate cargo securement, which as any serious owner-operator knows can pose serious risk to the driver and others on the road. Adverse impacts on the vehicle’s maneuverability, unsecured loads falling or becoming dislodged — all can result in roadway hazards and/or crashes, CVSA noted.
Overdrive/RigDig analysis shows a generally less-intense focus on cargo securement among states than hours, yet plenty variability state-to-state, too.
In 2025, CVSA said, 18,108 violations were issued because cargo was not secured to prevent leaking/spilling/blowing/falling, and 16,054 violations were issued for vehicle components or dunnage not being secured.
During Roadcheck 2025, cargo securement was the No. 5 overall vehicle violation across North America.
During the 72 hours of International Roadcheck, data will be collected, and the results will be released later this year.
