§392.80 prohibits a CMV driver from texting while driving. "Texting" is defined broadly to include any short-message, email, instant message, or web-page interaction that requires reading from or entering data into a device. The companion §392.82 covers hand-held phone use; together they form FMCSA's distracted-driving regime.
Severity weight + carrier penalties
Severity weight 10 in the Unsafe Driving BASIC — the top of the table, shared with §392.82 hand-held phone use, reckless driving, and speeding 15 mph or more over the limit (SMS Appendix A, version 3.21). §392.80(b) makes allowing or requiring a driver to text while driving a separate carrier violation, with the same $19,246 federal ceiling. Carriers whose dispatch model relies on texting drivers en route inherit the carrier-side exposure.
CDL impact
Two convictions in a separate three-year period: §383.51(b) "serious traffic violation" — 60-day CDL disqualification on second conviction, 120 days on third.
How to prevent it
- Publish a written no-texting policy and retain the acknowledgment in §391.51.
- Configure fleet messaging tools to block driver-side input while the vehicle is moving.
- Replace texting workflows (load updates, ETA, paperwork) with hands-free voice or pull-over dispatch.
- Pull phone records after any incident — text discovery is routine in CMV litigation.
How Roadworthy HQ helps
A texting conviction lands on the driver. Roadworthy HQ does not record individual violation codes, pull CSA or SMS scores, or track coaching. What it keeps is the driver file an auditor opens next: the annual MVR and the §391.25 annual review, each with reminders 60, 30, and 7 days out, and the qualification-file documents with their retention periods enforced. If the citation came from a roadside inspection, log that inspection on the vehicle (date, state, level, driver, number of violations, out-of-service or not). If a conviction disqualifies the driver, setting the driver's status to Disqualified sends a critical alert. It is a status and an alert; Roadworthy HQ has no dispatch system to block.