Carrier profile · USDOT 2155076 · MC-749207 · Updated Aug 20, 2026

Gaines Express LLC

10 power unitsavg 6.5 yrRegional · 4 statesHICKORY, NC80/100

CARRIER ACTIVEMC-749207 ACTIVERATED SATISFACTORYHAZMAT

Observed fleet · trailing 24 mo daily

10Power units

10 observed · MCS-150

9Trailers seen

Decoded · vPIC

6.5Avg age (yr)

2014–2023 · vPIC

Call dispatch(828) 358-3366 Email dispatchcgaines@gainesexpress.com

Click to see how we scored it

Load decision · FMCSA snapshot · Aug 20, 2026

Review before loading

Operating, but with flags a broker should weigh before tendering freight.

Watch · 2

Vehicle out-of-service rate well above average71.4% of vehicle inspections were placed out of service vs the 22.26% national average.Driver out-of-service rate above average7.1% vs the 6.7% national average.

In good standing · 3

Active operating authorityActive for-hire authority is on file with FMCSA.Insurance on fileBIPD (liability) insurance is on file with FMCSA.Established 15 yearsOperating authority has been on file since 2011.

USDOT registration

yr registered

Active for-hire

Insurance (BIPD)$1M in force

FMCSA L&I

Vehicle OOS · 24-mo71.4%

▲ 22.26% nat'l

Crashes · fatal

Clean · 24 mo

USDOT registration

yr registered

Active for-hire

Insurance (BIPD)$1M in force

FMCSA L&I

Vehicle OOS · 24-mo71.4%

▲ 22.26% nat'l

Crashes · fatal

Clean · 24 mo

Vektor intelligence · beyond the federal recordProprietary signals computed from VIN-decoded inspections & daily FMCSA snapshots

Fleet typeIdentity

Small fleet

10 power units. Brokers price each fleet type apart.

Fleet age vs peersTypical

6.5 yr

Model years 2014–2023 · peer benchmark unavailable.

Identity stabilityStable

15 yr unchanged

Same registration since 2011 — no chameleon / reincarnation signal.

Safety

14 inspections · 24 mo · vs national benchmarks

Out-of-service rate· 24-mo cumulative · vs national

Vehicle OOS 71.4%24-mo cumulative

050%nat'l 22.26%

Driver OOS 7.1%24-mo cumulative

030%nat'l 6.67%

Every inspection in the window pooled — 7 vehicle and 14 driver inspections over 24 months.

Vehicle OOS rate· vehicle OOS · vehicle-level inspections · 6-month trailing

75.0% · latest 6-mo window▲ Rising

Share of vehicle-level roadside inspections in each trailing six-month window that resulted in a vehicle out-of-service order. Trending up 23.8 pts across the window. The national vehicle benchmark uses the same metric and is shown on the chart.

Roadside inspection history· 24 charted calendar months · vehicle / driver level · any-OOS overlay

10 inspections in the charted months · busiest month Oct '24 · 2

Vehicle-levelDriver-levelAny OOS

Monthly FMCSA roadside inspections across the 24 charted calendar months. Bars show level-qualified vehicle and driver populations; one inspection can qualify for both. The line shows inspections with any out-of-service result.

Inspection coverage· expected vs observed · the fraud signal

Inspection coverage

How heavily FMCSA inspects this fleet for its size — it tells you how much to trust the safety signals above. Thin coverage on a young authority is a fraud signal nobody else surfaces.

Expected band

Under-inspected

Expected

Well-monitored

Heavily inspected

≈0.7 / unit·yr

thin signalabundant signal

Roadside-inspection volume is about what you'd expect for a 10-unit fleet — enough signal to read the safety record, though not a heavy sample.

Registered power units: 10
Inspections · 24 mo: 14
Annualized: ≈7 / yr
Coverage: ≈0.7 inspections / unit · yr

Violation themes· decoded · grouped by BASIC

What this carrier actually gets cited for — FMCSA violation codes decoded into plain English, ranked by frequency.

392.2 State/local traffic law violation (speeding, etc.)Unsafe Driving24 · 0 OOS
393.75 Tires (defective / underinflated / worn)Vehicle Maintenance15 · 13 OOS
395.3 Driving beyond hours-of-service limitsHOS Compliance10 · 0 OOS
395.22 ELD — provider/registration/malfunctionHOS Compliance7 · 0 OOS
393.47 Brake actuators / linings / componentsVehicle Maintenance7 · 0 OOS
395.8 Record of duty status (log / ELD) not current or missingHOS Compliance5 · 3 OOS
392.16 Failure to use seat beltUnsafe Driving5 · 0 OOS
396.3 Inspection / repair / maintenance not performedVehicle Maintenance5 · 4 OOS
393.9 Inoperative required lampsVehicle Maintenance4 · 0 OOS
393.53 Automatic brake adjusters / indicatorsVehicle Maintenance4 · 0 OOS

Explore full safety record — inspections, BASICs, crashes

Authority & Insurance

Can they legally + adequately haul your load?

Operating authority· 49 CFR · per type

Operating authority

Common: Active
Contract: Active
Broker: None

Insurance & bonds

BIPD / liability$1,000,000 in force

Cargo filing (census)Not recorded per census

Surety bond (census)Not recorded per census

Insurance adequacy· filed BIPD vs the $750K federal floor

$1M in forcegeneral-freight federal minimum

$750K floor

Filed BIPD coverage of $1M meets or exceeds the $750K federal minimum for general freight (49 CFR 387.9). Some commodities (hazmat, larger vehicles) require $1M–$5M — confirm against your load.

Insurance continuity· insurer · policy · lapses

$1M BIPD last filed ’26 · 9 insurers · 0 lapsesInsurer churn

Northland’11–’13

Stonewood’16–’18

Integon’21–’23

Stonewood’23–’25

Progressive Southeastern’25–now

2011201520192023now

Shorter eras are too brief to label at this scale — all 11 insurers are named in the list below.

BIPD in force — $1,000,000 · PROGRESSIVE SOUTHEASTERN INSURANCE COMPANY · since Jan 2026

All 11 insurer eras · dates, limits, renewals

Insurer	Period	Limit	Renewals
PROGRESSIVE SOUTHEASTERN INSURANCE COMPANY	Jan 2025 → Jan 2026	$1M	4
STONEWOOD INSURANCE COMPANY	Aug 2023 → Jan 2025	$1M	2
INTEGON INDEMNITY CORPORATION	Jan 2021 → Aug 2023	$1M	3
CAROLINA CASUALTY INSURANCE CO.	Jan 2020 → Jan 2021	$1M	4
INTEGON INDEMNITY CORPORATION	Feb 2019 → Jan 2020	$1M	3
NATIONAL CASUALTY COMPANY	Sep 2018 → Feb 2019	$1M	1
STONEWOOD INSURANCE COMPANY	Sep 2016 → Sep 2018	$1M	2
WILSHIRE INSURANCE COMPANY	Sep 2015 → Sep 2016	$1M	2
NEW YORK MARINE & GENERAL INS. CO.	Aug 2014 → Sep 2015	$1M	1
GREAT WEST CASUALTY CO.	Jul 2013 → Aug 2014	$1M	1
NORTHLAND INSURANCE COMPANY	Jul 2011 → Jul 2013	$1M	1

Explore full authority & insurance record

Equipment

VIN-decoded · NHTSA vPIC

Capacity· power units = haulable capacity; trailers are towed

Registered power units (MCS-150): 10
Observed power (24 mo): 10
Trailers (towed): 9

Capacity is power units only — trailers are towed equipment and are never summed into a fleet-size figure.

Fleet age· model years · decoded VINs

6.5 yr

Average age

2023

Newest model yr

2014

Oldest model yr

78.9%

VINs decoded

Explore full fleet — VIN roster, equipment mix, age distribution

Operations & Lanes

Revealed by inspection density across 4 states · 24 mo

Operating footprint· revealed by roadside-inspection geography

Operating radiusRegional

revealed

States observed

US states

Inspections · 24 mo

NC busiest

Inspection density by state· each tile = a state · shade = inspections, last 24 mo

Home base

HICKORY, NC

200 1ST AVE NW STE 202

Top corridor

NC 11 · GA 1 · MD 1

Density

fewermore

Shade = roadside inspections, last 24 mo.

See the full operating map — state density, top lanes

Network & Fraud

Affiliated entities & reincarnation signals · for review, not a verdict

No shared-VIN flow in the last 12 months

None of this carrier's trucks were inspected under another USDOT in the last 12 months — any shared equipment is historical, not active.

Show all-time history (52 trucks · 24 carriers)

Across all inspections on record: USDOT 2356666 USDOT 3401149 USDOT 3308057 USDOT 4256654 USDOT 3891113 USDOT 600140 USDOT 4152235 USDOT 4507691

Shares a registration email domain with other carriers

@gainesexpress.com — 3 carriers: USDOT 2940882 USDOT 3548681

Shares a company officer with other carriers

corey gaines — 4 carriers: USDOT 2913883 USDOT 3841275 USDOT 4532934

Capacity consistency· registered vs roadside-observed power units

Registered (MCS-150)

Observed (24 mo)

Shared w/ other carriers

Registered and roadside-observed capacity are broadly consistent.

Explore the carrier network & VIN cross-links

Identity & Federal

FMCSA census + L&I dossier

Location

Physical address: 200 1ST AVE NW STE 202, HICKORY, NC, 28601
Mailing address: PO BOX 2607, HICKORY, NC, 28603
Operation: Interstate· Hazmat

Contact

Phone: (828) 358-3366
Fax: (980) 223-3022
Email: cgaines@gainesexpress.com
Web domain: gainesexpress.com

Registration

Officer: Corey Gaines
USDOT / docket: 2155076 · MC-749207
First registered: May 18, 2011
Last MCS-150: Aug 13, 2025 · 3,100,000 mi (2022)
FMCSA safety rating: Satisfactory · Dec 4, 2019
D-U-N-S: —

Fleet (self-reported · MCS-150)

Power units

Drivers

CDL drivers

3,100,000

Annual mileage

Open the full identity & federal record

Federal activity

Daily-captured FMCSA licensing & insurance changes — monitored by Vektor

Federal record activity· monitored daily by Vektor

No licensing or insurance changes captured since Vektor began monitoring this carrier (June 2026). Quiet is usually good.

Open the full federal-record activity feed

Reviews

Verified broker, shipper & driver reviews — moderated

Performance ratings only — never the Vektor risk score

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Verification summaryAuthority, insurance, safety and identity facts for GAINES EXPRESS LLC.

GAINES EXPRESS LLC (USDOT 2155076) has a Vektor safety score of 80/100 and a Review before loading verdict, from the carrier's FMCSA record refreshed Aug 20, 2026.

The carrier holds active common and contract for-hire operating authority per FMCSA L&I as of Aug 20, 2026.

It has an active BIPD insurance filing with a $1,000,000 limit in force from PROGRESSIVE SOUTHEASTERN INSURANCE COMPANY effective Jan 9, 2026 in FMCSA L&I's current snapshot as of Aug 20, 2026.

Its vehicle out-of-service rate was 71.4% over the last 24 months, versus the 22.26% CVSA national average, from FMCSA roadside-inspection data refreshed Aug 20, 2026.

The carrier received 14 roadside inspections in the last 24 months — 7 vehicle-level and 14 driver-level — across 4 states, according to FMCSA roadside-inspection data refreshed Aug 20, 2026.

The carrier has 0 reportable crashes in the last 24 months and 1 fatal crash across the full FMCSA crash record available as of Aug 20, 2026.

It reports 10 power units and 45 drivers in its most recent MCS-150 filing dated Aug 13, 2025.

It has an FMCSA safety rating of Satisfactory assigned Dec 4, 2019 in the federal record refreshed Aug 20, 2026.

Frequently asked

What is GAINES EXPRESS LLC's USDOT number?

GAINES EXPRESS LLC's USDOT number is 2155076, and its motor carrier number is MC-749207.

Is GAINES EXPRESS LLC authorized to operate?

As of Aug 20, 2026, GAINES EXPRESS LLC is active in the FMCSA register with common, contract, broker operating authority on file.

What is GAINES EXPRESS LLC's safety record?

GAINES EXPRESS LLC has a 71.4% vehicle out-of-service rate (national average 22.26%) across 93 roadside inspections, with 0 reportable crashes in the last 24 months, and an FMCSA "Satisfactory" safety rating. Vektor's computed risk score is 80/100 (tier: review).