How to Screen CDL Truck Drivers: 8 Questions and What to Listen For Screening Interview Template

What class of CDL do you hold (A, B, or C), and what endorsements are on your license (Hazmat, Tanker, Doubles/Triples, Passenger)? Is your license active and free of restrictions?

What this assesses: Confirms eligibility for specific loads and lanes before anything else, since endorsements decide which freight this driver can legally haul and restrictions quietly rule people out of half your openings. Strong answers state class and each endorsement precisely, along the lines of Class A with Hazmat and Tanker and no restrictions, confirm the license is active, and know which state issued it. Be cautious with a candidate who is fuzzy on what endorsements they hold, does not know whether an automatic-only or air-brake restriction is on the license, or says they can get Hazmat later without a plan or a TSA timeline, since that is weeks of delay you find out about after the offer.

How many years have you been driving commercially, and what types of routes have you run — OTR, regional, dedicated, or local? Which do you prefer going forward?

What this assesses: Establishes real experience depth and, more importantly, route fit, which is the single best predictor of whether the driver is still on the truck in ninety days. Strong answers give concrete years, name the route types they have actually run, and state a clear preference with a reason behind it, usually family or home time. Be cautious with a candidate whose years do not line up with the jobs they list, who has only run local and is signing up for OTR because the pay looks better, or who says any route is fine, since no preference usually means they leave the first time home time disappoints them.

Are there any accidents, moving violations, or DOT-recordable incidents in the last three to five years that would show up on your MVR? When was your most recent MVR pulled?

What this assesses: Surfaces record problems before insurance underwriting kills the hire, which is where a surprising share of driver offers die. Strong answers volunteer any incident with the date, whether it was preventable, and what came of it, and they usually know roughly what is on their record because they have been asked before. Be cautious with a candidate who is evasive, minimizes a recent accident as not their fault without detail, or claims a spotless record that the MVR later contradicts. Honesty here matters more than a perfect record. A driver who tells you about a two-year-old speeding ticket up front is a safer bet than one who lets you find it.

Is your DOT medical card current, and when does it expire? Have you ever failed or refused a DOT drug or alcohol test, or had a positive test in the FMCSA Clearinghouse?

What this assesses: Verifies the driver is DOT-qualified today, not in theory, and screens for the Clearinghouse hits that disqualify a candidate at nearly every carrier until return-to-duty is complete. Strong answers name the med card expiration date, mention any short-term certification and why, and answer the drug and alcohol question directly with no hedging. Be cautious with a candidate who does not know when their card expires, has let it lapse and has no appointment booked, or gets careful and non-specific around the Clearinghouse question. A prohibited status found after orientation costs you the seat and the recruiting spend.

What equipment have you driven — manual versus automatic transmission, sleeper versus day cab, dry van, reefer, flatbed, tanker? Are there any equipment types you are not comfortable with?

What this assesses: Matches the driver to what is actually in your yard, and the two answers that matter most are manual transmission and flatbed. A driver trained on automatics who has never run a ten-speed will fail a road test on a manual fleet, and flatbed means securement and tarping in the rain, which plenty of dry van drivers will not do twice. Strong answers name specific equipment, give rough time on each, and are honest about what they would rather not run. Be cautious with a candidate who says they can drive anything, since that usually hides thin manual, flatbed, or tanker time and shows up on day one of orientation rather than in the screen.

Walk me through your experience with Hours of Service and ELDs. Which ELD systems have you used, and how do you plan trips to stay compliant?

What this assesses: Tests whether the driver plans around the clock or fights it, which is the difference between on-time freight and a violation on your CSA score. Strong answers name the ELD systems they have run, describe habits like scouting parking before the fourteen-hour clock runs out, using the split sleeper or the thirty-minute break deliberately, and calling dispatch early when a shipper delay is going to burn hours. Be cautious with a candidate who is vague on the basic limits, treats the ELD as buttons someone told them to push, or jokes about running around the logs, since log falsification is a compliance problem you inherit.

Tell me about a time something went wrong on a run — a breakdown, a weather delay, a difficult shipper or receiver. How did you handle it and how did you communicate with dispatch?

What this assesses: Reveals composure and, more usefully, communication habits, since a driver alone at a receiver two states away is only as manageable as their willingness to pick up the phone. Strong answers walk through a specific breakdown, ice storm, or a receiver that sat on them for six hours, and describe calling dispatch early with an updated ETA rather than after the appointment was already missed. Be cautious with a candidate who cannot recall a single incident in years of driving, describes going quiet and sorting it out alone, or tells the story as a grievance against a shipper or a dispatcher, since that pattern repeats on your freight.

What is your preferred home time, what pay range are you targeting, and how soon could you start orientation if a good fit comes through?

What this assesses: Captures the three things that actually break driver hires, and asking them last means you already know whether the driver is qualified before you find out whether the deal works. Strong answers give a realistic home-time expectation, a pay target inside a normal range for the lane, and a concrete date they could sit in orientation, usually two weeks out for notice. Be cautious with a candidate who wants every weekend home on an OTR lane, quotes a rate well above the market for the freight, or cannot name a start date, since drivers who stay noncommittal here tend to be running your offer against two others. Score every driver against the same [structured interview](/glossary/structured-interview) rubric so credentials and route fit decide the hire rather than who happened to answer the phone, and use [asynchronous screening](/glossary/asynchronous-screening) so a driver can finish the screen from a truck stop at 9 p.m. instead of losing the recruit to a week of phone tag.