The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) Brake Safety Week is scheduled for August 24-30, 2025. Enforcement officials will inspect commercial motor vehicles throughout the week. Vehicles found to have critical out-of-service brake violations, or other critical vehicle out-of-service inspection item violations, will be restricted from traveling until those violations are corrected. Vehicles that pass eligible inspections may receive a CVSA Password-Inspection decal.
Brake Safety Week is part of law enforcement’s effort to reduce brake-related crashes by conducting roadside inspections and identifying and removing unsafe commercial motor vehicles from roadways. Checking brake system components is always part of the roadside inspection process.
What Inspectors Are looking For
During the brake portion of a vehicle inspection, inspectors will look for missing, non-functioning, loose, contaminated or cracked parts on the brake system, and non-manufactured holes (such as rust holes and holes created by rubbing or friction) and broken springs in the spring brake housing section of the parking brake. Additionally, this year they will be focusing on drums and rotors.
During the 2024 inspection and law enforcement initiative, 13 percent of all trucks inspected were parked with an out-of-service violation.
Brake drums and rotors are important components of a vehicle’s brake system. Issues with drums and/or rotors may affect a vehicle’s brake efficiency. In addition, broken pieces of drums and/or rotors may become dislodged from the vehicle during travel and damage other vehicles or result in injuries.
Partnership with FMCSA
Brake Safety Week is part of CVSA’s Operation Airbrake program, in partnership with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators.
In addition to CVSA's Brake Safety Week, August is also Brake Safety Awareness month. Along with inspections and enforcement, law enforcement agencies engage in outreach and awareness efforts to educate drivers, motor carriers, mechanics, owner-operators, and others on the importance of proper brake maintenance, operation, and performance.
Want to receive more articles like this?
Subscribe to the Great West blog and receive updates whenever a new blog is posted. Click the link below to get started today!
©Great West Casualty Company 2025. The material in this publication is the property of Great West Casualty Company unless otherwise noted and may not be reproduced without its written consent by any person other than a current insured of Great West Casualty Company for business purposes. Insured should attribute use as follows: “© Great West Casualty Company 2025 Used with permission by Great West Casualty Company.”
This material is intended to be a broad overview of the subject matter and is provided for informational purposes only. Great West Casualty Company does not provide legal advice to its insureds, nor does it advise insureds on employment-related issues. Therefore, the subject matter is not intended to serve as legal or employment advice for any issue(s) that may arise in the operations of its insureds. Legal advice should always be sought from the insured’s legal counsel. Great West Casualty Company shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss, action, or inaction alleged to be caused directly or indirectly as a result of the information contained herein.
