What counts toward my UCR tier bracket?
Power units operated in interstate commerce — owned or leased, straight trucks and tractors. Excluded: trailers, intrastate-only vehicles, dollies, converter gear, and vehicles below the CMV threshold (typically 26,001 lbs GVWR for CDL-class). Leased equipment counts toward the lessee's tier, not the lessor's.
The UCR tier is keyed to power-unit count from the carrier's most recent MCS-150 — straight trucks, tractors, and CMV-grade vehicles operated in interstate commerce. The count typically matches the carrier's reported power-unit count on the federal record.
Excluded: trailers (any type), dollies, converter gear, intrastate-only vehicles (those that never cross state lines), and any vehicle below the CMV threshold. A carrier with 8 owned trucks and 12 trailers is Tier 3 (8 power units), not Tier 4 (20 total). Trailers never count toward UCR.
Leased-on owner-operators: the truck counts toward the lessee's (the carrier's) tier. The owner-operator does not file separate UCR for that vehicle. If the OO has their own MC and runs additional trucks under their own authority, those additional trucks count toward their own UCR tier.
A common mistake: counting trailers and getting bumped into a higher tier than necessary. Verify the count against the MCS-150 power-unit field; ensure trailers and intrastate vehicles are excluded.