391.11 Violation: What It Means and How to Fix It
Data through September 24, 2026 · Last updated October 28, 2026 · By Chad Griffith, founder
Quick Answer
391.11 (General qualifications of drivers) was cited 15,994 times in roadside inspections of interstate for-hire carriers with 5 to 50 trucks from September 25, 2024 to September 24, 2026, and 71.2% of those citations put the driver or vehicle out of service. The most common version is 391.11B2-Q: Driver cannot satisfy the English language proficiency requirements of 391.11(b)(2) in accordance with the current corresponding FMCSA enforcement guidance (391..
15,994
Citations on carriers with 5 to 50 trucks
71.2%
Out of service
128,656
All carriers, same period
What the rule says
A driver must be qualified under 49 CFR 391.11, including the ability to read and speak English well enough to talk with the public, understand highway signs, answer officials and make entries on reports (391.11(b)(2)).
When it puts you out of service
Since June 25, 2025, a driver who fails the English proficiency check is placed out of service under the CVSA out-of-service criteria and FMCSA's May 20, 2025 enforcement guidance; the English proficiency code is 82% out of service in this data.
The codes on the inspection report
| Code | What the officer wrote | Severity weight | Citations, 5 to 50 trucks | Out of service |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 391.11B2-Q | “Driver cannot satisfy the English language proficiency requirements of 391.11(b)(2) in accordance with the current corresponding FMCSA enforcement guidance (391.” | 4 | 7,753 | 82.0% |
| 391.11B2-Z | “Border Zone - Driver cannot satisfy the English language proficiency requirements of 391.11(b)(2) in accordance with the current corresponding FMCSA enforcement” | 4 | 2,627 | 1.5% |
| 391.11B4 | “Medical (Certificate) - Operating a CDL (passenger or property carrying) vehicle that is non-excepted and the driver has self-certified as excepted interstate or” | 2 | 1,038 | 94.4% |
| 391.11B2-S | “Driver cannot satisfy the English language proficiency requirements of 391.11(b)(2) in accordance with the current corresponding FMCSA enforcement guidance (391.1” | 4 | 978 | 95.4% |
| 391.11B5-LNCDLNVL | “License - Operate a CMV without a valid operators license issued by one State or jurisdiction” | 8 | 975 | 99.0% |
| 391.11B4-CLHA | “Medical (Certificate) - Operating a commercial vehicle without corrective lenses or hearing aid as indicated on the driver's medical certificate” | 2 | 733 | 99.7% |
| 391.11B5-LNCDLNVE | “License - Endorsement - Operate a CMV without proper endorsement” | 8 | 577 | 99.0% |
| 391.11B2 | “Driver cannot read or speak the English language sufficiently to respond to official inquiries” | 4 | 423 | 11.6% |
| 391.11B4-DEN | “Driver operating a CMV without proper endorsements or in violation of restrictions” | 8 | 365 | 97.5% |
| 391.11B1-A | “Age - Operate a CMV while not at least 21 years of age in interstate commerce” | 4 | 222 | 97.8% |
| 391.11B5-DNL | “Driver does not have a valid operator's license for the CMV being operated” | 8 | 128 | 97.7% |
| 391.11A-QMC | “Qualifications - Having operated or authorized a person to operate a CMV without being qualified” | 8 | 92 | 3.3% |
How it scores (violation points)
How it scores: in FMCSA's Safety Measurement System each violation counts its severity weight, plus 2 if it put the driver or vehicle out of service, times 3 in its first 6 months, 2 from 6 to 12 months, and 1 from 12 to 24 months. FMCSA has approved a simpler scale that is not live yet.
How to fix it
- The driver may not drive a commercial motor vehicle in interstate commerce until they meet 391.11(b)(2).
- At hiring, check English proficiency in the interview and road test, and write down that you did.
- Review the qualification file for the other 391.11 items: age, license, medical certificate, road test.
Stop it happening again
- Make the proficiency check a written step in your hiring checklist.
Challenging it in DataQs
Use DataQs (dataqs.fmcsa.dot.gov) only when the report is wrong: the wrong carrier or vehicle, a violation that did not happen, or a citation a court dismissed without a fine or found you not guilty of, which removes it from the Safety Measurement System; a conviction of a different charge lowers its weight to 1 (FMCSA adjudicated citations policy). Fixing the defect afterward is not a reason to remove it; keep the repair record instead.
FileFlo reads your public FMCSA record, lists every violation with the rule behind it, and keeps the driver and vehicle records that stop repeats.
Run it yourself: the Audit-Ready Setup, $499 through December 31, 2026, then $199 a month for up to 15 trucks. Or FileFlo runs it: $1,500 a month for up to 15 trucks, Setup included, and your first month back if you are not happy.
About these numbers
Counts are violations cited in roadside inspections used in FMCSA's Safety Measurement System from September 25, 2024 to September 24, 2026 (dataset 8mt8-2mdr on data.transportation.gov, October 2026 run). Carriers with 5 to 50 trucks means 66,936 active interstate for-hire carriers with 5 to 50 power units and more trucks than buses, based in the 50 states or DC, from FMCSA's census file. This is FileFlo's reading of public FMCSA data, not an FMCSA rating. Severity weights are the current SMS weights.