The post-trip driver vehicle inspection report (49 CFR 396.11)

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Last reviewed November 12, 2026.

49 CFR 396.11(a) requires every motor carrier to have its drivers report, and every driver to prepare a report in writing at the completion of each day's work, on each vehicle operated, except for intermodal equipment tendered by an intermodal equipment provider. If a driver operates more than one vehicle during the day, a report must be prepared for each vehicle operated.

Parts and accessories the report must cover

The report must cover at least these parts and accessories, which are listed in 49 CFR 396.11(a)(1):

• Service brakes including trailer brake connections
• Parking brake
• Steering mechanism
• Lighting devices and reflectors
• Tires
• Horn
• Windshield wipers
• Rear vision mirrors
• Coupling devices
• Wheels and rims
• Emergency equipment

This list is a minimum. The report must identify the vehicle and list any defect or deficiency discovered by or reported to the driver which would affect the safety of operation of the vehicle or result in its mechanical breakdown.

Signature

The driver must sign the report. On two-driver operations, only one driver needs to sign, provided both drivers agree as to the defects or deficiencies identified. 49 CFR 396.11(a)(2)(ii).

When no report is required: the current no-defect rule

The current text of 49 CFR 396.11(a)(2)(i) states that drivers are not required to prepare a report if no defect or deficiency is discovered by or reported to the driver. That is the federal rule today for operations subject to § 396.11(a), whether the vehicle carries property or passengers.

Two earlier changes got the rule to this point:

• 2014. FMCSA removed the requirement to submit and retain a DVIR when no defect or deficiency was found or reported, for commercial motor vehicles other than passenger-carrying CMVs. See the final rule Inspection, Repair, and Maintenance; Driver-Vehicle Inspection Report (79 FR 75449, December 18, 2014).
• 2020. FMCSA extended that same no-defect relief to drivers of passenger-carrying CMVs, effective September 17, 2020. See Passenger Carrier No-Defect Driver Vehicle Inspection Reports (85 FR 50793, August 18, 2020). The current eCFR text no longer treats passenger carriers differently on this point.

A report is still required when a defect or deficiency is discovered by or reported to the driver. Motor carriers may still require no-defect reports as a company policy. Older FMCSA guidance that said passenger-carrying drivers must always prepare a DVIR is out of date and should not be used in place of the current regulation.

Operations that are excepted from § 396.11

The rules in 49 CFR 396.11 do not apply to a private motor carrier of passengers (nonbusiness), a driveaway-towaway operation, or any motor carrier operating only one commercial motor vehicle. 49 CFR 396.11(a)(5).

Corrective action and how long to keep the report

Before requiring or permitting a driver to operate a vehicle, the motor carrier or its agent must repair any listed defect or deficiency that would be likely to affect the safety of operation. The carrier or agent must certify on the report that lists any defect or deficiency that the defect or deficiency has been repaired, or that repair is unnecessary, before the vehicle is operated again. 49 CFR 396.11(a)(3). Those steps are explained further in Defects, repairs, and driver acknowledgment.

The motor carrier must maintain the driver vehicle inspection report, the certification of repairs, and the certification of the driver's review for three months from the date the written report was prepared. 49 CFR 396.11(a)(4). See Record retention and carrier responsibilities.

Intermodal equipment

Intermodal equipment tendered by an intermodal equipment provider is covered by 49 CFR 396.11(b), not by the motor-carrier report in paragraph (a). Providers must have a process to receive driver reports of known damage, defects, or deficiencies when the equipment is returned, and the report must cover a specific list of parts (brakes; lighting and conspicuity materials; wheels, rims, lugs, and tires; air-line connections; king pin; rails or support frames; tie-down bolsters; locking devices; and sliders). The report has its own content, signature, repair-certification, and three-month retention rules. Read 49 CFR 396.11(b) for the full text.

Electronic reports

The report required by § 396.11(a) may be created and maintained in electronic format, in accordance with 49 CFR 390.32. That is now stated directly in 49 CFR 396.11(a)(6). The same permission appears in § 396.11(b)(5) for intermodal reports. See Electronic DVIRs.

Related guides

• What a DVIR is and who must complete one
• Pre-trip inspection (49 CFR 396.13)
• Defects, repairs, and driver acknowledgment
• Electronic DVIRs

Sources

• 49 CFR 396.11 — Driver vehicle inspection report(s) (current text, including amendments noted at 79 FR 75449, 85 FR 50793, and 91 FR 7896)
• FMCSA, Inspection, Repair, and Maintenance; Driver-Vehicle Inspection Report (2014 rule)
• FMCSA, Passenger Carrier No-Defect Driver Vehicle Inspection Reports (2020 rule)
• FMCSA page on the 2020 passenger-carrier no-defect rule