Why you need to check the motor vehicle (MVR) file

3 min readNov 21, 2019

A motor vehicle record (MVR) report shows driver’s driving history

A Motor Vehicle Record (also known as MVR) is a report of your driving history, as reported from your state Department of Motor Vehicles. It’s a document which states information about the driver and his/her driving history.

Information on this report may include:

drivers License information
point history
violations
convictions
license status.

Some states include other personally identifying information such as a person’s Name, Date of Birth, Height, and Weight, gender, eye color, and hair color. Looking at the document you may find about the driver’s traffic citations, vehicular crimes, accidents, driving under the influence (DUI) convictions and the number of points on the individual’s driver’s license.

MVR Background Check information varies per state

The amount of information you can get from an MVR check varies by state. Some states only keep records for 3 years, others for as long as 10. If there is negative information reported on an MVR in the report, the same adverse action requirements apply as they would with criminal records.

The purpose of MVR check

MVR Checks are critical when hiring a driver in the transportation industry. Employers want and need to know that an employee that will be driving for them is safe and responsible behind the wheel. In some states, convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs cannot be found on the criminal court record and can only be revealed with an MVR review.

Some insurance companies consider the information in MVR reports, along with other factors, when determining insurance eligibility and insurance premiums. Generally, insurance companies can look back five years into an individual’s MVR. These records are especially important in the case of jobs involving commercial motor vehicles (CMVs).

The frequency of MVR check

The carrier must review the motor vehicle records of drivers it employs to determine whether that driver meets minimum requirements for safe driving or is disqualified to drive a CMV (per 391.15). The carrier must request each driver’s MVR every 12 months and must keep the record for 3 years.

Companies regulated by the Department of Transportation (DOT) are required to request MVR reports annually on their drivers.

MVR report issuers

The motor vehicle records are kept by the Department of Motor Vehicles in each state. There is no such thing as a national database to search driving records, so MVRs are typically done only for the state where an applicant holds a current license. Typically when a driver wants to get a report online one should look for MVR aggregators like Samba Safety or Verisk.

The automation of MVR records reading

Companies that deal with high volumes of requests and receive many MVRs at the same time are looking for MVR reading automation solutions. MVR analytics is a tool empowered with visual artificial intelligence. The tool is able to read multiple files at the same time and does it in seconds as for the human it would take up to 30 mins. to do a single MVR report check. The MVR analytics tool not only reads and extracts data to be able to send it to your ERP and CRM systems but it is also a helper for underwriters or HR departments to identify if the driver record meets company rules i.e. driver is old enough to operate the tractor. Also, it gives aggregated information on how many violations (if any) and what level they occurred in the particular time frame. This tool is an irreplaceable helper when you deal with big amounts of MVRs at the same time or you have a constant flow and need to automate this part letting your employees focus on more important tasks on a driver evaluation process.

Need to customize the MVR analytics tool following your internal corporate rules? No problem. Get in touch with us (www.mvranalytics.com) and let’s have a conversation about how we can adapt it for you.