---
title: "Out-of-service order"
url: https://carrierkyc.com/glossary/out-of-service-order
description: "An out-of-service order is an enforcement declaration that bars a driver, a vehicle or an entire motor carrier operation from operating until the order is lifted."
---

# Out-of-service order

**Definition:** An out-of-service order is an enforcement declaration that bars a driver, a vehicle or an entire motor carrier operation from operating until the order is lifted.

Also called: OOS order, Out of service. Category: FMCSA & freight.

FMCSA's definition covers declarations by federal, state, Canadian, Mexican or local officers that a driver, vehicle or carrier operation is out of service. Roadside orders take a driver or truck off the road for violations. Company-level orders stop the whole operation and can follow an imminent hazard finding, failure to pay civil penalties, or operating under a new identity to evade enforcement (49 CFR 386.73). A carrier rated unsatisfactory is also prohibited from operating.

FMCSA publishes an out-of-service orders dataset on data.transportation.gov listing entities that have received an OOS order. For a factor, a carrier under an OOS order can't legally haul. Invoices for loads dated during an order raise the question of who actually moved the freight, and carriers placed out of service sometimes reappear under a new name as [chameleon carriers](https://carrierkyc.com/glossary/chameleon-carrier).

> **Red flag: Red flags** An OOS order dated before the load date on an invoice. A new applicant sharing a phone, address or officer with a carrier under an OOS order. A client that won't discuss a recent order.

The [carrier check](https://carrierkyc.com/tools/carrier-check) shows OOS orders alongside authority status and related entities.

## Related

- [Chameleon carrier](https://carrierkyc.com/glossary/chameleon-carrier)
- [CSA BASICs](https://carrierkyc.com/glossary/csa-basics)
- [SAFER](https://carrierkyc.com/glossary/safer)
- [Revocation](https://carrierkyc.com/glossary/revocation)
- [Carrier risk check](https://carrierkyc.com/tools/carrier-check)

## Sources

- [49 CFR 390.5T: Definitions (out-of-service order)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/section-390.5T) (eCFR)
- [49 CFR 386.73: Reincarnated carriers](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/section-386.73) (eCFR)
- [49 CFR 385.13: Unsatisfactory rated motor carriers](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/section-385.13) (eCFR)
- [49 CFR 386.83: Failure to pay civil penalties](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/section-386.83) (eCFR)
- [FMCSA Out of Service Orders](https://data.transportation.gov/Trucking-and-Motorcoaches/OUT-OF-SERVICE-ORDERS/p2mt-9ige) (data.transportation.gov)