Does Any Owner Of Cargo Vans/Cube Vans Pay For Fuel & Tolls For Driver ?

[bluefish55]

I understand as a expedited driver-sub-contractor that as a driver I am in business too. But being unemployed, starting out I can not pay for fuel and tolls, go get a expensive smart phone on a 2 year contract or get a prepay smart phone, go get workers comp. and have a credit card to drive a cube van for an owner and no FSC. Does any owner pay for fuel and tolls and pays the driver a milage rate for loaded miles instead of the 60/40 split ?

 

[ntimevan]

From reading posts on here for a couple YEARS before going out as owner -OP, You might find an owner that would pay for fuel and tolls BUT my guess is you'll get 35 % of the load pay and that makes for a tight BUDGET for the first months.

 

[greg334]

Sorry about the harshness, I'm not trying to bash you and understand where you are coming from. BUT someone has to start speaking about the realities of this business because I see it may be getting to the point that people are running out of unemployment and taken advantage of by idiot owners who just will use them.

I understand as a expedited driver-sub-contractor that as a driver I am in business too.

That's true.

But being unemployed, starting out I can not pay for fuel and tolls,

Being unemployed is one thing but trying to make money at this means you have to have money.

go get a expensive smart phone on a 2 year contract or get a prepay smart phone,

Smart Phone is not a requirement for this work, so ditch that idea and get something basic.

go get workers comp.

This is something that the owner should help you out with.

and have a credit card to drive a cube van for an owner and no FSC.

I don't understand - no FSC?

Does any owner pay for fuel and tolls and pays the driver a milage rate for loaded miles instead of the 60/40 split ?

Yes a lot of them do, but the sad thing is that many will think this is a "job" where they will make real money and things will turn out good for them when in reality driving a van for an owner may be the worse thing someone does.

 

[chefdennis]

The more of the expenses the owner pays, the lower the rate he will pay the driver, it really is that basic...

As greg said, its not to be harsh or bash you...but in reality, if you can't afford to be out here for a month at a miniumum on your own dime with a dine coming in, then you really shouldn't be out here at all.....that goes for someone that owns a van (but he had better have 3-6 months worth of cash to cover expenses) or a driver...making this business work without proper funding is a recipe for failure.....

As to finding an owner that will pay ALL expenses, yes you might, but again, the more he pays out in expenses, the lower the rate he pays to the driver....

Now, that being said, there are carriers who issue a company fuel card to the owner/driver that is used for fuel at specfic places and the amount used in each week is deducted from the settlement before the owner/driver is paid....and that is from day 1..but, you will need cash for fuel when you are in areas that you can not use the card..and that will happen....

The workers comp replacement, sorry thats on driver as far as i am concerned....

 

[blizzard2014]

The more of the expenses the owner pays, the lower the rate he will pay the driver, it really is that basic...

As greg said, its not to be harsh or bash you...but in reality, if you can't afford to be out here for a month at a miniumum on your own dime with a dine coming in, then you really shouldn't be out here at all.....that goes for someone that owns a van (but he had better have 3-6 months worth of cash to cover expenses) or a driver...making this business work without proper funding is a recipe for failure.....

As to finding an owner that will pay ALL expenses, yes you might, but again, the more he pays out in expenses, the lower the rate he pays to the driver....

You are right Cheff. 3 years ago when things were better I'd have argued with you on this point. I came out with a used van and 400 dollars cash in 2007. The only difference was that things were much better back then. Sure I had to use a strategy to get loads, and I did have experience with Panther at the time, but I didn't have to try as hard to get a load. I worked my way out of the 400 dollar slump (but mostly by luck) and it has got a lot to do with luck.

I was conversing with one gentleman who had been working with Panther for a year and he had to borrow money from his family to make his 250 dollar a month van payment. For some reason he was not getting the good miles like I was and he was very disgruntled. You also have to consider the fact that there are always going to be those that do well and those that do not. I'd really consider re-considering this unless you can see yourself freezing in a cargo van for the next couple of months trying to make 300 bucks a week.

 

[blizzard2014]

I own my own company now and the margins that i'm getting on loads aew very slim. Some day it doesn't really seem worth it to load up my trucks. There is a lot of behind the scenes work involved with loading up vans - and then staying up all night making position update calls and dealing with other things that can happen. I have had some loads where I only made 30 dolalrs because I pay my drivers better than some of the other outfits out here, but it really isn't getting me anywhere business wise.

I'm pretty sure this is one of the slowest years I've seen since I started. I used to get 2 - 3 short loads a week in California and i'd net 1600 a month after fuel and expenses on 2-3 small one way trips a week. I haven't seen hardly any of these loads in the past 8 weeks, and the longer loads that I have seen are going too cheap for me to even fool with them. It just goes to show the current state of affairs for cargo van freight. I do however think that things will improve nexe year - or at least I hope they do!

 

[bluefish55]

Thank you Greg334 for your reply. This is about a cube van that holds 6 skids, not a cargo van. But having a smart phone is a requirement of NOW Expedite Co. They use it to dispatch you with all pickup and delivery info. through e-mail. You also have to take a picture of signed and dated BL. once delivered and crop picture and send throught smart phone e-mail to Now Expedite. The owner I would work for offers no help on workers comp. and says he gets no FSC. The cube van will hold 6 skids and he says he got 4000 miles last week, averges 2500 miles a week. BS. Maybe. I would have enough money to pay for my food. I have never been on unemployment. I am 56 and have 15 years experience driving Non-CDL 24'-26' straight trucks and cube vans over the road 30 state area for Air Freight companys. This is not my first time around. It's not like I don't understand the expediting business. I am just a good driver looking to do a good job for a owner and myself and make some money for both of us.

 

[Rocketman]

Thank you Greg334 for your reply. This is about a cube van that holds 6 skids, not a cargo van. But having a smart phone is a requirement of NOW Expedite Co. They use it to dispatch you with all pickup and delivery info. through e-mail. You also have to take a picture of signed and dated BL. once delivered and crop picture and send throught smart phone e-mail to Now Expedite. The owner I would work for offers no help on workers comp. and says he gets no FSC. The cube van will hold 6 skids and he says he got 4000 miles last week, averges 2500 miles a week. BS. Maybe. I would have enough money to pay for my food. I have never been on unemployment. I am 56 and have 15 years experience driving Non-CDL 24'-26' straight trucks and cube vans over the road 30 state area for Air Freight companys. This is not my first time around. It's not like I don't understand the expediting business. I am just a good driver looking to do a good job for a owner and myself and make some money for both of us.

You sound like you would make somebody a GREAT driver. But, your shaking the wrong tree. You need to find someone else to drive for...owner and company from what I'm seeing.

 

[bluefish55]

Thank you Rocketman for not bashing me too hard. I think you make a good point. There are just not any over the road non-cdl straight truck or cube van jobs around. And I want to be an over the road driver, it gets in your blood. A CDL-B would cost me $300.00 to get. I know you have to spend money to make money. It's just a shame that a driver would have to have all this money just to get a job with a owner in expediting. Thank you all for the discussion, it's been a pleasure.

 

[greg334]

Well I really can't add much more but if the company requires you to have a "smart" phone, they need to pay for it.

 

[MCGohio1985]

Ok I supply all my vans with smart phones as for workers comp no where dose it say u need it all the companies we run for gave us a form stating that drivers are responsible for that as for gas my 1st driver I did pay for gas but he was idleing the van all the time and moving 3 and 4 hundred miles DH on his own that was a lot of gas money the van was not making money and had to pay him out of my pocket so now the drivers have to cover there fuel all the drive watches his idle time and in the end a 60/40 split the drive will put more money in his pocket plus I think of the driver has some skin in the game he or she will do a better job

Sent from my PC36100 using EO Forums

 

[blizzard2014]

Ok I supply all my vans with smart phones as for workers comp no where dose it say u need it all the companies we run for gave us a form stating that drivers are responsible for that as for gas my 1st driver I did pay for gas but he was idleing the van all the time and moving 3 and 4 hundred miles DH on his own that was a lot of gas money the van was not making money and had to pay him out of my pocket so now the drivers have to cover there fuel all the drive watches his idle time and in the end a 60/40 split the drive will put more money in his pocket plus I think of the driver has some skin in the game he or she will do a better job

Sent from my PC36100 using EO Forums

I would always make the driver pay for fuel because they will drive the van slower to save in fuel and they won't be repositioning all over the place on a moments whim. The driver must have some skin in the game or else they will just walk all over the owners.

 

[AMonger]

Ok I supply all my vans with smart phones as for workers comp no where dose it say u need it all the companies we run for gave us a form stating that drivers are responsible for that as for gas my 1st driver I did pay for gas but he was idleing the van all the time and moving 3 and 4 hundred miles DH on his own that was a lot of gas money the van was not making money and had to pay him out of my pocket so now the drivers have to cover there fuel all the drive watches his idle time and in the end a 60/40 split the drive will put more money in his pocket plus I think of the driver has some skin in the game he or she will do a better job

Sent from my PC36100 using EO Forums

Punctuation.

Really. It exists for a reason.

--

You know the problem with bad cops? They make the other 5% look bad.

 

[cheri1122]

I would always make the driver pay for fuel because they will drive the van slower to save in fuel and they won't be repositioning all over the place on a moments whim. The driver must have some skin in the game or else they will just walk all over the owners.

I also think drivers should pay for fuel, but not because they "will walk all over the owners". Some would, but not all, and choosing a driver who can be trusted, & understands that their own best interests coincide with the owner's is how an owner becomes successful.
Driver should pay for fuel because they control the consumption, and it eliminates the friction of 'how much is too much' that would always be hanging over their heads when deciding whether to DH or sit tight. Hard and fast rules just don't work in this business, where so many variables affect that decision, IMO.

 

[cheri1122]

Thank you Rocketman for not bashing me too hard. I think you make a good point. There are just not any over the road non-cdl straight truck or cube van jobs around. And I want to be an over the road driver, it gets in your blood. A CDL-B would cost me $300.00 to get. I know you have to spend money to make money. It's just a shame that a driver would have to have all this money just to get a job with a owner in expediting. Thank you all for the discussion, it's been a pleasure.

Bluefish: paying for fuel doesn't have to come out of your pocket - many carriers offer programs [fuel cards and/or cash advances for fuel] that allow you to get the fuel w/o paying cash.
Tolls are usually another story - I'd suggest an EZ Pass, as it's always the easiest way [and the cheapest] way, no matter who pays in the end.

 

[Mike99]

I understand as a expedited driver-sub-contractor that as a driver I am in business too. But being unemployed, starting out I can not pay for fuel and tolls, go get a expensive smart phone on a 2 year contract or get a prepay smart phone, go get workers comp. and have a credit card to drive a cube van for an owner and no FSC. Does any owner pay for fuel and tolls and pays the driver a milage rate for loaded miles instead of the 60/40 split ?

We do not do that but we help the driver with a fuel card. In this way he is responsible for gas but he is not using his money.

 

[bluefish55]

Bluefish: paying for fuel doesn't have to come out of your pocket - many carriers offer programs [fuel cards and/or cash advances for fuel] that allow you to get the fuel w/o paying cash.
Tolls are usually another story - I'd suggest an EZ Pass, as it's always the easiest way [and the cheapest] way, no matter who pays in the end.

cheri1122: Thank you for the info. I can tell you are are experienced, smart person, good at business who can give me good advice instead of telling me to stay home and look for something else. I will look into how I can get a EZ Pass. The owner I am talking with only has 2 cube vans and insist that I buy a smart phone which is required, but I can't do that at this time. But I know I have to have money to be in expediting to get started.

 

[cheri1122]

cheri1122: Thank you for the info. I can tell you are are experienced, smart person, good at business who can give me good advice instead of telling me to stay home and look for something else.

I just tell people how something can be done - what they choose to do is their call.
If I'd posted particulars before I started, they probably would have told me to stay home too, lol. But I didn't find EO till after I'd made some [major] mistakes, so I try to help now that I can.

I will look into how I can get a EZ Pass.

Someone who compared posted Illinois as the best, and it's what I have. Link:
http://www.illinoistollway.com/portal/page?_pageid=133,1&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL


The owner I am talking with only has 2 cube vans and insist that I buy a smart phone which is required, but I can't do that at this time.

I think I've seen prepaid smartphones @ WalMart - not sure how it works, but worth a look.

But I know I have to have money to be in expediting to get started.

Yep, and the more you have, the better chance of success. Plus the freedom to walk away from an owner/carrier you don't trust, if that happens, while sticking to your end of the contract. Abandoning the vehicle is NOT acceptable, so you need to be able to return it, and pay your way home if need be.
It's always good to have a Plan B.