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Carrier Risk Intelligence

High-Risk Carriers in North Carolina

Analysis of motor carriers with elevated crash histories based on federal safety data. This report identifies carriers with the highest severity scores within the 24-month monitoring period.

2,179
Total Crashes
Top 50 Carriers
96
Fatal Crashes
Top 50 Carriers
1,561
State Fatalities
NHTSA 2023
12.3%
Truck-Involved
Of Total Fatalities

Understanding Carrier Risk Assessment

This analysis identifies motor carriers in North Carolina with elevated crash frequencies using a weighted severity scoring methodology. The severity score weights incidents by their human impact: fatal crashes receive the highest weight (10 points), followed by injury crashes (5 points), and tow-away incidents (1 point). This approach prioritizes carriers whose crashes resulted in the most serious outcomes.

Important context: A carrier's appearance on this list does not necessarily indicate negligence or poor safety practices. DOT-reportable crashes can occur through no fault of the commercial vehicle operator. Large fleet operators with more trucks and higher mileage will statistically experience more incidents than smaller carriers, even with equivalent safety performance on a per-mile basis.

Shippers, freight brokers, and insurers should use this data as one component of a comprehensive carrier vetting process. Additional factors to consider include the carrier's SMS percentiles, out-of-service rates, driver fitness scores, and whether crashes were determined to be preventable through FMCSA's DataQs review process.

North Carolina Carrier Landscape

Total Registered Carriers 130,923
Carriers with Crash History 4,227 (3.2%)
Total Carrier Crashes 8,900
Fatal Carrier Crashes 315

NHTSA Safety Context

2023 Traffic Fatalities 1,561
Truck-Involved Fatalities 192
Fatality Rate (per 100k) 14.1
Year-over-Year Trend — 6.3%

Major Corridors: I-85 (Piedmont), I-40 (E-W), I-95 (E)

How We Calculate Risk Rankings

Our risk ranking methodology uses a weighted severity scoring system designed to prioritize carriers whose crash histories indicate the greatest potential harm to public safety. Unlike simple crash counts, which treat all incidents equally, our severity score assigns different weights based on the human impact of each crash type. This approach reflects the reality that a carrier involved in multiple fatal crashes presents a fundamentally different risk profile than one with only minor tow-away incidents.

The formula assigns 10 points per fatal crash, 5 points per injury crash, and 1 point per tow-away crash. This weighting is consistent with the FMCSA's own approach to evaluating crash severity within the Safety Measurement System (SMS). The resulting score provides a single, comparable metric that accounts for both the frequency and severity of a carrier's crash history within the most recent 24-month federal monitoring period.

It is important to note several limitations of this approach. First, DOT-reportable crashes include incidents where the commercial vehicle may not have been at fault. A carrier rear-ended at a traffic light is included in the same dataset as a carrier that caused a rollover through negligent driving. The FMCSA's DataQs process allows carriers to challenge crash records they believe are inaccurate or non-preventable, but this process does not always result in records being removed.

Second, fleet size normalization is not applied to these rankings. Large national carriers operating thousands of trucks across millions of miles will statistically accumulate more crashes than small local operators, even with superior safety programs. For a more balanced assessment of individual carriers, we recommend viewing their complete safety profile where you can compare crash rates relative to fleet size, or use our carrier comparison tool for direct side-by-side analysis.

What You Can Do With This Data

  • Shippers: Cross-reference carriers on your approved list. If a current partner appears in the top rankings, request their corrective action plan and consider additional monitoring.
  • Freight Brokers: Use this data as part of your carrier vetting process. High severity scores should trigger enhanced due diligence before load assignment.
  • Consumers: If you are hiring a moving company or other carrier, verify they do not appear on high-risk lists. Learn how to check a carrier's safety record.
  • Insurance Professionals: State-level risk rankings support territorial rating analysis and portfolio risk assessment for commercial auto underwriting.

Top 50 High-Risk Carriers in North Carolina

Ranked by weighted severity score. Click carrier name for detailed safety report.

Rank Carrier Name City Trucks Crashes Fatal Score
#1 OLD DOMINION FREIGHT LINE INC USDOT: 90849 THOMASVILLE 10,974 598 27 2252
#2 CARDINAL LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT CORPORATION USDOT: 191496 CONCORD 2,954 148 4 534
#3 BFS ASSET HOLDINGS LLC USDOT: 325981 RALEIGH 4,923 122 1 412
#4 WASTE INDUSTRIES USA USDOT: 198696 RALEIGH 1,586 100 344
#5 LOWE'S HOME CENTERS LLC USDOT: 97235 MOORESVILLE 1,507 68 2 330
#6 ADUSA TRANSPORTATION LLC USDOT: 57029 SALISBURY 862 73 2 309
#7 EPES TRANSPORT SYSTEM LLC USDOT: 120195 GREENSBORO 1,183 72 256
#8 CARGO TRANSPORTERS INC USDOT: 257768 CLAREMONT 500 54 6 247
#9 CCBCC OPERATIONS LLC USDOT: 1441162 CHARLOTTE 2,586 74 245
#10 HILCO TRANSPORT INC USDOT: 328463 GREENSBORO 240 43 160
#11 PIKE ELECTRIC LLC USDOT: 165182 MT AIRY 5,569 46 3 158
#12 SHARP TRANSIT LLC USDOT: 910824 SALISBURY 360 42 3 157
#13 HARRIS TEETER LLC USDOT: 16362 MATTHEWS 389 33 2 153
#14 BILLOR US TRANSPORT LLC USDOT: 3749157 RALEIGH 467 33 1 135
#15 MURPHY BROWN LLC USDOT: 1021423 WARSAW 511 31 128
#16 BOTTOMLEY ENTERPRISES INC USDOT: 1212652 MT AIRY 152 25 4 124
#17 BLUE MAX TRUCKING INC USDOT: 292091 CHARLOTTE 310 30 1 122
#18 WASTE MANAGEMENT OF CAROLINAS INC USDOT: 334451 GASTONIA 513 30 1 120
#19 MIGWAY INC USDOT: 2328470 PINEVILLE 276 35 2 119
#20 PEPSI BOTTLING VENTURES LLC USDOT: 148431 RALEIGH 754 27 111
#21 MABE TRUCKING CO INC USDOT: 517375 EDEN 240 26 1 110
#22 COMPASS GROUP USA INC USDOT: 132504 CHARLOTTE 2,569 33 109
#23 RED CLASSIC TRANSIT LLC USDOT: 2097834 CHARLOTTE 577 36 108
#24 LEE ELECTRICAL CONSTRUCTION LLC USDOT: 730593 ABERDEEN 452 20 2 106
#25 SUPERIOR CRANES INC USDOT: 732140 ROCKINGHAM 253 16 106
#26 BEST DEDICATED LLC USDOT: 1247640 KENERSVILLE 312 23 105
#27 SWTO LLC USDOT: 943113 WINSTON-SALEM 225 29 1 99
#28 MACHINE & WELDING SUPPLY COMPANY USDOT: 108607 DUNN 269 12 2 97
#29 KRISPY KREME DOUGHNUT CORPORATION USDOT: 3383643 CHARLOTTE 185 17 2 94
#30 MOUNTAIN RIVER TRUCKING COMPANY INC USDOT: 277392 MT AIRY 105 17 2 92
#31 CONCRETE SUPPLY CO LLC USDOT: 2483821 CHARLOTTE 559 26 91
#32 CAROLINA POWER & SIGNALIZATION INC USDOT: 2556917 FAYETTEVILLE 513 10 4 90
#33 GREENWAVE TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS INC USDOT: 3960268 GREENVILLE 115 20 90
#34 1-800-PACK-RAT LLC USDOT: 1534531 WAKE FOREST 345 19 83
#35 TIDEWATER TRANSIT CO INC USDOT: 90882 KINSTON 305 26 80
#36 COLONY TIRE CORPORATION USDOT: 432824 EDENTON 359 10 5 80
#37 SUNROCK INDUSTRIES LLC USDOT: 715155 RALEIGH 200 10 1 80
#38 HK TRUCKING LLC USDOT: 4023650 CHARLOTTE 125 15 80
#39 WALL RECYCLING LLC USDOT: 1924620 RALEIGH 158 16 1 80
#40 PK TURBO LLC USDOT: 2455716 MATTHEWS 9 5 3 75
#41 ROAD WIZARDS INC USDOT: 2999415 PINEVILLE 201 19 1 74
#42 DUKE ENERGY BUSINESS SERVICES LLC USDOT: 94646 CHARLOTTE 3,861 25 73
#43 CASE FARMS LLC USDOT: 1321356 TROUTMAN 109 13 73
#44 HAN FENG INC USDOT: 1155011 GREENSBORO 51 8 3 73
#45 MERIDIAN WASTE NORTH CAROLINA LLC USDOT: 2528448 RALEIGH 75 15 73
#46 EXPRESS MILE LOGISTICS LLC USDOT: 3645884 CHARLOTTE 11 2 2 72
#47 FRANCHI TRUCKING INC USDOT: 2443971 HIGH POINT 30 7 1 67
#48 RODRIGUEZ CARGO AND TRANSPORTATION LLC USDOT: 4161156 WILSON 9 1 5 66
#49 L J ROGERS JR TRUCKING INC USDOT: 310011 MEBANE 98 11 66
#50 COMMERCIAL READY MIX PRODUCTS INC USDOT: 311689 WINTON 156 8 1 63

Methodology & Data Sources

Severity Score Calculation

The severity score is calculated as: (Fatal Crashes × 10) + (Injury Crashes × 5) + (Tow-Away Crashes × 1). This weighting prioritizes carriers whose incidents resulted in the most serious human consequences. The formula is consistent with FMCSA's approach to evaluating crash severity in the Safety Measurement System.

Data Period

Crash data reflects the 24-month federal monitoring period maintained in the Motor Carrier Management Information System (MCMIS). This rolling window ensures rankings reflect current safety performance rather than historical incidents that may no longer be relevant to carrier operations.

Limitations

This analysis does not account for fleet size normalization, vehicle miles traveled, or fault determination. Large carriers operating extensive fleets will naturally appear more frequently than smaller operators. Users should review individual carrier profiles for complete safety assessments.

Disclaimer

Rankings are provided for informational purposes only. Inclusion on this list should not be interpreted as an indication of carrier negligence or unsafe operations. Users should conduct comprehensive due diligence before making carrier selection decisions.

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