In This Guide
Current Status: 391.27 Is Reserved
If you open 49 CFR 391.27 in the Code of Federal Regulations today, you will find it marked "[Reserved]." That is the regulatory way of saying the section number still exists but contains no active requirement. The annual record-of-violations obligation that used to live there was removed by FMCSA's Record of Violations final rule, which took effect May 9, 2022.
This matters because the certificate of violations was, for decades, a fixture of every driver qualification file checklist, onboarding packet, and DOT-compliance consultant's intake form. A large amount of trucking-compliance content — and many internal carrier procedures — still treat it as a live requirement. It is not. Understanding exactly what changed keeps you from chasing a document FMCSA no longer asks for, and from mistaking its absence for a compliance gap.
The one-line version
The driver no longer has to hand you an annual list of their own violations. You — the carrier — still have to pull and review their MVR every 12 months. Same monitoring goal, one fewer piece of paper, and the responsibility sits squarely with the carrier under 391.25.
What the Certificate of Violations Required
Before it was removed, 49 CFR 391.27 required each motor carrier, at least once every 12 months, to have each driver it employed prepare and furnish a written list of all motor vehicle traffic violations — other than parking violations — for which the driver had been convicted, or had forfeited bond or collateral, during the preceding 12 months. If the driver had no such violations, the driver signed a certification to that effect. The carrier retained the signed list (or the no-violation certification) in the driver qualification file.
The document itself
A driver-prepared, driver-signed list of traffic convictions and bond/collateral forfeitures (excluding parking) over the prior 12 months — or a signed statement that there were none.
The deadline
At least once every 12 months for each driver the carrier employed. The list was collected on the annual cycle and filed in the driver qualification file.
Where it lived
In the driver qualification file under 391.51, alongside the application, MVRs, road test certificate, and medical examiner's certificate.
Note one historical exception that often caused confusion: a driver who, in any period of 7 consecutive days, drove for more than one motor carrier did not have to furnish a separate list to each carrier. That nuance is now moot for the certificate itself, since the underlying requirement is gone — but it illustrates why the rule generated so much paperwork friction for short-term and multi-carrier drivers, which fed into FMCSA's decision to remove it.
Why FMCSA Removed It
FMCSA removed 391.27 because it was largely duplicative. Under 49 CFR 391.25, every motor carrier was already required — and is still required — to make an annual inquiry to obtain each driver's official motor vehicle record from the State licensing authority and to review it. The MVR is the authoritative State record of a driver's convictions. A separate list, prepared by the driver from memory, added administrative burden without adding a reliable safety signal the carrier was not already getting from the MVR.
The Record of Violations final rule, effective May 9, 2022, removed 391.27 in its entirety and struck the cross-references to it elsewhere in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. The agency framed it as a streamlining and paperwork-reduction measure: carriers keep the obligation that produces the reliable record (the annual MVR review) and shed the one that merely restated it.
What Replaced It: The 391.25 Annual MVR Review
Nothing "new" replaced the certificate of violations — the obligation it served was already covered by 49 CFR 391.25, which is now the sole home for the carrier's annual record-monitoring duty. The 391.25 requirements break into three parts.
| Requirement | Regulation | What It Means |
|---|---|---|
| Annual inquiry | 391.25(a) | At least once every 12 months, obtain the MVR of each driver from the appropriate State licensing authority. |
| Annual review | 391.25(b) | Review that MVR to determine whether the driver still meets minimum safe-driving standards or has become disqualified — giving great weight to speeding, reckless driving, and DUI. |
| Documentation note | 391.25(c)(2) | Keep a note in the driver qualification file with the name of the person who performed the review and the date it was performed, plus the MVR itself. |
For the full mechanics of the annual MVR review — what counts, how to document the safety supervisor's sign-off, and the most common ways carriers miss it — see the dedicated guide.
Who Still Needs to Track Driver Violations
Every motor carrier that employs drivers operating commercial motor vehicles in interstate commerce still has to monitor each driver's record at least once every 12 months — the duty simply runs through 391.25 now rather than 391.27. That includes the single-truck owner-operator, who is both the carrier and the driver and must review their own MVR annually and document it.
Still required (via 391.25)
- Annual MVR inquiry from the State licensing authority
- Annual review of that MVR against safe-driving standards
- A dated review note with the reviewer's name in the DQF
- Same duty applies to single-truck owner-operators
No longer required
- Driver-prepared annual list of their own violations
- Driver-signed no-violation certification
- A separate 391.27 document in the qualification file
- Collecting the list separately from each multi-carrier driver
Update Your DQF Checklist
The practical action item is small but worth doing: audit your onboarding packet, your driver qualification file checklist, and any consultant-provided intake forms, and remove the annual certificate of violations as a required document. Keeping a driver-signed violation list is not prohibited — some carriers still collect one as a belt-and-suspenders measure — but it is no longer required, and you should not flag its absence as a compliance failure or hold a file open waiting for it.
Where operators trip up
The real risk after this change is the inverse mistake: dropping the certificate of violations and assuming the whole violation-monitoring duty went with it. It did not. If you stop collecting the certificate and also let the annual MVR review lapse, you have created a genuine 391.25 violation. The certificate is optional now; the annual MVR review is not.
How FileFlo Helps
The takeaway after 2022 is that the carrier's violation-monitoring obligation is now entirely about the annual MVR review under 391.25 — and that is a recurring, per-driver deadline that is easy to lose track of across a fleet. FileFlo is the records layer that keeps it from slipping: it stores each year's MVR and the dated review note in the driver qualification file, and it fires alerts before the next 12-month review comes due.
FileFlo is not an MVR-monitoring data service or a State records provider — it is the system of record that organizes the MVRs you obtain, holds the 391.25(c)(2) review notes, and proves the annual review happened on time when an auditor asks. It also keeps your driver qualification file checklist current, so a removed requirement like the certificate of violations does not leave a phantom gap in your files.
What FileFlo tracks after the 391.27 change
- Annual MVR review deadlines: Per-driver 12-month review cycles with 60/30/7-day alerts so the 391.25 review never lapses.
- Dated review notes: Store the 391.25(c)(2) note — reviewer name and review date — attached to each driver's file and each annual MVR.
- A current DQF checklist: Your file template reflects today's 391.51(b) requirements, not the retired certificate of violations.
- Audit-ready export: Produce a complete, organized qualification file — MVRs and review notes included — in minutes when FMCSA calls.
Key Takeaways
- The standalone certificate of violations is gone. 49 CFR 391.27 was removed effective May 9, 2022 and the section is now reserved.
- It was removed for being duplicative of the annual MVR inquiry the carrier must already perform under 391.25.
- The monitoring duty did not disappear. Carriers must still pull and review each driver's MVR at least once every 12 months and document the review under 391.25(c)(2).
- Update outdated checklists. Remove the certificate of violations as a required DQF document; do not flag its absence as a gap.
- The inverse mistake is the dangerous one. Dropping the certificate is fine; letting the annual MVR review lapse with it is a real 391.25 violation.
Certificate of Violations: FAQ
Answers to common questions about the removed 49 CFR 391.27 certificate of violations and the 391.25 annual MVR review.
No. The standalone annual certificate (or list) of violations under 49 CFR 391.27 was removed effective May 9, 2022. FMCSA found the requirement duplicative of the annual motor vehicle record (MVR) inquiry that motor carriers must already perform under 49 CFR 391.25. Carriers no longer need to collect a driver-prepared annual list of traffic convictions for the driver qualification file. The 391.25 annual MVR inquiry and review now satisfy the carrier's obligation to monitor each driver's record.
Before May 9, 2022, 49 CFR 391.27 required each motor carrier, at least once every 12 months, to have each driver prepare and furnish a list of all motor vehicle traffic violations (other than parking) for which the driver had been convicted or had forfeited bond or collateral during the preceding 12 months. If the driver had no violations, the driver signed a statement to that effect. The carrier kept the signed list or no-violation certification in the driver qualification file under 391.51.
FMCSA removed 49 CFR 391.27 because it was largely duplicative of 49 CFR 391.25, which already requires every motor carrier to make an annual inquiry to obtain each driver's motor vehicle record and to review that record. Because the MVR is an official State record of convictions, the agency concluded that a separate driver-prepared list added paperwork without adding safety value. The Record of Violations final rule removing 391.27 took effect May 9, 2022.
Yes. The obligation moved, it did not disappear. Under 49 CFR 391.25, every motor carrier must, at least once every 12 months, obtain the MVR for each driver and review it to determine whether the driver still meets minimum safe-driving requirements or has become disqualified. The review must give great weight to violations such as speeding, reckless driving, and operating under the influence. A note with the reviewer's name and the review date goes in the driver qualification file per 391.25(c)(2).
Yes. Any checklist or onboarding packet that still lists an annual 'certificate of violations' or 'list of violations' as a required driver qualification file document is out of date. The current required annual record under 49 CFR 391.51(b) is the MVR from the 391.25(a) inquiry plus the 391.25(c)(2) review note. Keeping a driver-signed violation list is no longer prohibited, but it is no longer required and should not be treated as a compliance gap if absent.
It removes the certificate of violations from the list of records you must retain, but it does not change the retention rules for the records that remain. Under 49 CFR 391.51(d), the annual MVR and the annual driving-record review note may be removed from the file three years after they were generated. As a practical matter, carriers keep the full qualification file for the duration of employment plus three years so files for recently terminated drivers are available for audit.
Never Miss an Annual MVR Review
With the certificate of violations gone, the annual MVR review under 391.25 is the obligation that matters — and it is a recurring, per-driver deadline. FileFlo tracks every review cycle, stores the dated review notes, and keeps your driver qualification files audit-ready.
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