Leasing To Carrier OR Own Authority?

[mac]

Well its down to the wire to decide on my future as an independent or lease on to a carrier. I will begin September 15th, And i have made a large effort to research both as much as possible on the internet for thats all thats availble to me here in Kosovo. I will return home August 3rd to start the process beginning with help from OOIDA who advised will complete all paperwork necessary to apply. I have checked and rechecked most loadboards ,and Getloaded seems to provide all the nesessary info except rates.(I am not well informed on current rates) Surcharges are confusing,But i feel comfortable on how to apply it when a rate is quoted. I want to own my truck and make decisions that will directly effect my future,And if mistakes are made its mine with no contributing factors. I guess leasing would save some money, but control is my motivation. I consider myself fortunate in that for the last two years this mission has allowed me to save for my future as an independent so now its put up or shut up, But boy is it ever scary. I do want to say thanks to the truckers who have responded to my questions in the past for you have been very helpful. Just to let all of you know that Americans aren't just dying in Irag, We have lost many here. God Bless "AMERICA"and SEMPER FI.

[WalkThruTheSky]

Keep in mind that if you are going to start out with your own authority instead of leasing on with a reputable company you will need enough capitol to keep the truck you buy in fuel as well as in good repair all around for 60 days.

Most brokers on the internet load boards, such as truckstop.com and getloaded.com take 30 days to pay for each load you haul for them.

Alot are paying rates that are around 1.10 per mile.

If you run independant this would be an example.

The first load you run comes from joe shmoe truck broker. Upon you calling he tells you of the load you are inquiring about. You ask the rate. His first offer will be about a buck a mile. Don't settle for that. Tell Joe Shmoe you need to get 1.25 per mile. The negotiations are now open so go from there.

The load goes from This town america to that town america. Miles for the run are 1800. Figure your fuel is gonna run ya at least 600 bucks for the trip.

You head out on monday the 1st. You get to that town america and deliver on wednesday the 3rd.

Get an invoice made out as soon as you possibly can and send it along with the load confirmation sheet and signed bills to Joe Shmoe because the 30 days start the day he gets that invoice, not the day you deliver.

for the next 30 days minimum you still have to be able to get your fuel to keep that truck running until the checks start coming in.

There are many other expences that you have to consider when making the descision.

I am not sure if I would trust OOIDA, or anyone else, to do all the paperwork for me. That's my opinion though. I would get a few other opinions before making that choice.

When I got my authority I did almost everything on my own. I paid no fees to any outside firm to do the applications. My savings were substantial. The process is not very difficult. If I can do it you can.

I currently use one firm for one purpose. They keep track of my miles in each state along with the fuel purchased. They use the info to keep me updated on what taxxes I owe for each quarter.

There are many things you need with you own authority that are provided for you if you lease on with a reputable esstablished company.

Weather you leaso on or not your biggest expence will always be fuel. The next biggest would be the truck payment. Then comes the insurance. If you have no truck payments the insurance will be the second largest expence.

I save 15% of each load in a maintenance fund. This fund can build over time if your truck is in kept in excellent running condition. That fund is the third largest expence though. Don't use it for anything except repairs and Maint. If no repairs are needed over a large period of time you'll be able to save enough for whatever breakdown comes your way. Believe me, sooner or later a breakdown of some sort will happen.

What I am getting at is the expences that are considerably less if you lease on with someone. You also will not have to go for that initial 30 days with no income.

[mac]

Thank you for your in depth time and effort in your response to my questions. Maybe in the future i can be of some help to you.

Stay Safe
Mac

[WalkThruTheSky]

You're welcome.

If you're anything like me you'll like the business much better if you run independant.

Being independant you'll not be committed to just one company.

If things don't work out running your own authority you always have the option of leasing on with someone.

We need more independants out here, that's for sure.

:cheers:

[DrivingZiggy]

Whew! Walker-dude is much more frugal than I to be able to save that much in maintenance account while getting those rates!

Now, before you get hooked up with GetLoaded.com, read this and decide if you really want to do business with them:Ninth Court upholds Verdicts in Internet Truckstop Vs. Getloaded.com

For Immediate Release
November 22, 2004

The Ninth Federal Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the district court's judgment totaling $1,006,228 in favor of Internet Truckstop for the trade secrets and computer fraud and abuse case against Getloaded.com. In addition, the court has permanently enjoined Getloaded from accessing the Internet Truckstop website. "We are pleased that this appeal is completed and that this precedent setting ruling has set an ethical standard for all such future cases" declared Scoot Moscrip, President of Idaho based Internet Truckstop. "Getloaded.com committed some very serious offenses; we hope that this ruling will deter other companies from being tempted to engage in similar behavior."

In decision from the Appellate court, Judge Andrew Kleinfeld wrote that when Getloaded started in the freight matching business that they "wanted to compete, but not honestly" and they employed "tricks that enabled them to see all the information available to Internet Truckstop's bona fide customers." The court went on to uphold that "Getloaded's officers also hacked into the code Internet Truckstop used to operate its website." Injunctions were filled by Internet Truckstop against Getloaded, but the appellate court found that "The injunction did not work. Getloaded violated it. The district court made an express finding that Getloaded acted with its knowledge - lied under oath and violated the Court's injunction."

Mr. Moscrip stated "and we are just happy to have that court's decision affirmed and this case completed."

About Internet Truckstop

Internet Truckstop is the largest and oldest Internet based freight matching service. They facilitate nearly 150,000 load and truck posting per day matching the needs of its 22,000 active subscribers. Located in New Plymouth Idaho, Internet Truckstop has been in business since 1995.

Contact: Scott Moscrip Internet Truckstop 208-278-5097 OOIDA is a smooth move. I've been a member for a while, and when it was time for me to get my authority, I called them. I didn't have them do anything for me, but they sent me a package outlining the steps to take. Since I already knew where to go in my state for most of the stuff, I saved myself a couple hundred $$$ by doing it myself.

When I got my authority, I was in a bind. So I started up with hardly a penny to my name. I had enough fuel money for my first run. Luckily, I had hooked up with a broker who not only paid me promptly when I swung by her office with the paperwork from that first load, but she also included the money for the second load which I hadn't even delivered yet!

Since then, it's been a learning experience and I'm pretty sure I won't be able to work for somebody else ever again. I suppose I can if the fuel prices keep doing what they're doing.

On the other hand, if you don't have any experience trucking, I would not eeeeeeeeeeeeeven recommend that you go straight from non-trucking to having your own authority. Spend at least a year or 2 as an employeee, then get a truck and lease on to somebody for a year or two. There is much to learn from other people before you go out on your own.

I use Members Edge load board, which I got through OOIDA. They also have pretty much the same info as GetLoaded.com. And, of course, you can pay extra for the other extras like full credit reports instead of a credit rating.

I've been relatively careful with whom I've dealt since beginning operations under my own authority on May 24th, 2004. I've never been stiffed by a broker although some are quite slow.

Others, like Mercer pay as soon as they receive the paperwork. Still many others offer Quick Pay for an additional percentage of your cut, usually 2% but can range from 1-12%.

At present, I'm struggling. This is because I attempted to have a 2 truck operation and was not successful at it. However, if I had stuck with only 1 truck I would be doing really well right now. Once I sell the other truck I won't have that payment and insurance to maintain any more and I'll be on the road to financial recovery.

I try to keep my revenue over $1.60 per mile (flat bed freight) and am usually successful. Of course, I'm not able to do it every time. And I'm also able to get more than $2 per mile on occasion. Last year from the time I got my authority to the end of the year my average including empty miles was $1.42, not counting empty $1.55. But my revenues seem to be up this year--especially since I've added a couple of customers with whom I don't have to use a broker. Those are very lucrative and I highly recommend bypassing the brokers every time you get a chance!

[mac]

Thanks guys for all of your time, I'm not new to trucking but the last time i drove was in 98. I have done alot of homework in reference to catching up on compliance laws, Etc, but deciding on rates is difficult being out for so long. I am familar with fuel surcharges, But the benchmark rate of 1.10 has to be so outdated to use to calculate. After seeing the decision on Getloaded i would feel uncomfortable. I have checked out Carrier depot on their rate format, But i have been told not to rely on their figures. I want to be independent more than being leased, And i am fortunate enough to have the capital to purchase truck/trailer, And have capital in reserve for problems that arise, But watching and accounting for every penney spent will mandate my success. I guess i will just have to begin by trial and error and strive to make sensible and realistic decisions.

Stay safe gentlemen[/i][/b]

[truckermanitoba]

Check with magic man he went with loadstar he seems to be doing ok. goodluck.

[WalkThruTheSky]

Whew! Walker-dude is much more frugal than I to be able to save that much in maintenance account while getting those rates!!

Not real frugal actually. My advantge is that I have no truck payment. When I bought the truck I paid for it then and there.

Van frieght pays pretty lousey. Heavy frieght that is usually pretty low cost product its self.

Even what you would think of as a "Good" load offers very little.

I was asked if I'd haul a load from the denver mint to LA. Pay... Less than 80 cents per mile. The product was to be 7 million 6 hundred thousand pennies. 19 bags of 400,000 pennies each.

For better rates get a flatbed or drop deck. Reefers pay a bit better than vans too. Myself, I don't like reefer loads so I don't own one.

I'll be pulling a drop deck I bought a few months back.

I also don't use the internet load boards for my frieght. After a time running independant you'll have no problem running for faily regular customers if your treat them right.

Biggest advice I can give ya is don't compromise your lowest rate. If you go in thinking you'll not haul a load that pays less than a certain amount, then do not go below that amount. There is plenty of frieght out here.

Also as Ziggy said get yourself involved in OOIDA. I didn't use them to get my authority but I am a member.