The American trucking industry has been plagued by companies that rack up safety violations and penalties, then shut down and quickly reopen under a new identity to evade regulatory enforcement and hide poor safety records. Such companies have become known as chameleon carriers.
But the Department of Transportation is taking action to prevent chameleon-carrier fraud by rolling out a new, modernized registration system.
‘The lack of accountability is disturbing, and it’s killed American families on our roads.’
The DOT and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced on Tuesday the live launch of Motus, a system that “replaces a decades-old network of loosely connected applications rife with fraud, waste, and abuse.”
FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs called Motus “a major advancement.”
“This system improves efficiency for legitimate carriers while strengthening FMCSA’s ability to detect fraud, improve data quality, and identify unsafe operators,” Barrs stated.
The previous “fractured” registration system allowed bad actors to easily exploit loopholes and “game the system,” according to the DOT.
“This outdated registration system operates on a low-barrier, minimal-validation framework — making it alarmingly simple for fraudsters to register as motor carriers. All they needed was an email, name, and physical address,” the DOT stated.
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The department estimated that there are “several thousand suspicious registration numbers tied to fraudulent carriers.”
The DOT’s new unified registration system will rely on biometrics and data analytics to verify the identities of carrier applicants. Motus mandates identity verification protocols, such as government-issued identification and digital facial scans.
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“Dangerous foreign drivers and the shell companies who employ them have been taking advantage of this lax, decrepit federal registration system for years. The lack of accountability is disturbing, and it’s killed American families on our roads,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated. “Thanks to President Trump, we are delivering a new registration system that will stop fraud dead in its tracks and strengthen oversight on shady carriers.”
“And for good, honest drivers who follow the rules — our new system will improve customer service, enhance reliability, and cut down on red tape,” Duffy continued. “Today marks another important milestone in our crusade to make America’s roads safer, and it reflects the Trump administration’s commitment to cracking down on fraud wherever it hides.”
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