Carrier's DOT rating-a concern?

In considering a new carrier, I note their poor DOT rating (http://www.safersys.org/CompanySnapshot.aspx).

Last year, they settled 20 counts for "False reports of records of duty status" [395.8(e)] in a compliance review. The Driver Safety Evaluation Area (DRSEA) is 99.78. Driver Review Indicator (DRI) is 99.8, with 2 critical violations (compliance review found the false logs mentioned above & an unexplained violation of 392.2). Driver Inspection Indicator (DII) is 83. Safety Management SEA is 84.

I log legal (loose leaf) & run safe. When I interview the carrier (this week), how should this concern be addressed? I don't want to give them a reason to not hire me. OTOH, neither I nor them will be happy if we don't agree on how to run.

I've about 6 months (clean MVR) solo regional with a small carrier. The prospective (OTR) carrier is also small & advertises on Craigslist only, AFAIK; stating 2 yrs exp required. A good contact there tells me that I have an excellent chance getting on board (referral).

My current carrier is liquidating & I'm ready for OTR with a small carrier, with a personal touch regarding scheduling.

 

Breaking down the Safety SEA:

Compliance Review Results Safety Mgmt (18 months): Safety Mgmnt Review Indicator (SMRI) 0.0, Safety Mgmt Review Measure (SMRN) 0. Review from last yr (a month before the compliance review mentioned in PP, resulting in fines) had no critical nor acute violations.

They are not a Hazmat carrier, so that column is clean.

The only portion of Safety SEA with any info in it is Closed Enforcements (in 6 yrs, 1 closed enforcement; the 1 mentioned before). Enforcement History Indicator (EHI) is 84, Enforcement Severity Measure (ESM) is 4.

 

In discussing this topic with an experienced fellow driver, he commented that a poor Vehicle SEA is of greatest concern. There's little a driver can do about poor equipment. A poor Safety Mgmt SEA is not as serious, provided the individual driver keeps paperwork clean, he feels.

My contact/referral is pleased with the maintenance & equipment. He says they encourage (incentivize?) voluntary Level 1 inspections (to improve their score). An outside firm audits logs & gives feedback to drivers directly. He's been flagged over at coops once this year, running OTR.

 

ISS-D is 100.

 

All the responses are pointing me away from this carrier.

*What* exactly is the harm in working for a carrier with high ISS-D, Safety SEA, etc? If I keep my paperwork clean, run legit, etc, how do poor DOT scores "ruin my good name"?

I'd think that a high ISS-D would mean more coop stops. Seems this is not so, given that my contact has been stopped once this year, running OTR. If stopped, & my paperwork is legit (always is now, don't see that changing just because I'm with a new carrier) how does this harm me? So long as equipment is A-1 (seems to be, based on very few OOS; fewer than current carrier, who has a better DOT score), I fail to see how a coop stop will do more than delay the load & jumble planned rest stop.

I appreciate the feedback & concern y'all have. Just trying to understand the "why" of your feedback.

A rather green driver such as myself seems to have precious few opportunities to run with maintained equipment, hometime/schedule that's compatible & a flawless (FedEx) DOT profile.

I'm looking for a small carrier (I a name, not a #) that is good to it's word. It is important that I can shut down (34 hr reset) on weekends, not necessarily at home. At current regional carrier, I've been home every weekend except for 1. I was under a load (2 states away) with a reload for Mon. I tweaked my schedule to spent Fri & Sat eve with friends, getting to my Mon unload Sun night. The prospective carrier has been getting my contact home every weekend. What OTR carrier, major or minor, will hire a 6 month-experience driver & give such a schedule?