The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has announced the start of the Crash Preventability Determination Program (CPDP). Under this program, if you have an eligible crash that occurred on or after August 1, 2019, you may submit a Request for Data Review (RDR) with the required police accident report and other supporting documents, photos, or videos through the agency’s DataQs website.

FMCSA announced a Crash Preventability Demonstration Program (CPDP) on July 27, 2017, to evaluate the preventability of eight categories of crashes through submissions of Requests for Data Review to its national data correction system known as DataQs. On August 5, 2019, based on experiences with the demonstration program, FMCSA proposed a new CPDP with a streamlined process. Based on comments received in response to the August 2019 proposal, FMCSA established the CPDP, which will expand the types of eligible crashes, modify the Safety Measurement System to exclude crashes with not preventable determinations from the prioritization algorithm, and note the not preventable determinations in the Pre-Employment Screening Program.

The following crash types are eligible for participation in the program:

Struck in the Rear type of crash when the commercial motor vehicle (CMV) was struck in the rear or on the side at the rear.

Wrong Direction or Illegal Turns type of crash when the CMV was struck by a motorist driving in the wrong direction; by another motorist in a crash when a driver was operating in the wrong direction; or by a vehicle that was making a U-turn or illegal turn.

Parked or Legally Stopped type of crash when the CMV was struck while legally stopped at a traffic control device (e.g., stop sign, red light, or yield); or while parked, including while the vehicle was unattended.

Failure of the other vehicle to Stop type of crash when the CMV was struck by a vehicle that did not stop or slow in traffic; or by a vehicle that failed to stop at a traffic control device.

Under the Influence type of crash when the CMV was struck by an individual under the influence (or related violation, such as operating while intoxicated), according to the legal standard of the jurisdiction where the crash occurred; or by another motorist in a crash where an individual was under the influence (or related violation such as operating while intoxicated), according to the legal standard of the jurisdiction where the crash occurred.

Medical Issues, Falling Asleep, or Distracted Driving type of crash when the CMV was struck by a driver who experienced a medical issue which contributed to the crash; or by a driver who admitted falling asleep or admitted distracted driving (e.g., cellphone, GPS, passengers, other).

Cargo/Equipment/Debris or Infrastructure Failure type of crash when the CMV was struck by cargo, equipment, or debris (e.g., fallen rock, fallen trees, unidentifiable items in the road); or crash was a result of an infrastructure failure.

Animal Strike type of crash when the CMV struck an animal.

Suicide type of crash when the CMV struck an individual committing or attempting to commit suicide.

Rare or Unusual type of crash when the CMV was involved in a crash type that seldom occurs and does not meet another eligible crash type (e.g., being struck by an airplane or skydiver or being struck by a deceased driver).

For more information on the Crash Preventability Determination Program, visit www.fmcsa.dot.gov/crash-preventability-determination-program.

SOURCE: The Weekly Propane Newsletter, May 28, 2020. Weekly Propane Newsletter subscribers receive all the latest posted and spot prices from major terminals and refineries around the U.S. delivered to inboxes every week. Receive a center spread of posted prices with hundreds of postings updated each week, along with market analysis, insightful commentary, and much more not found elsewhere.