OK gang, I have signed on as an agent with a broker finally. I'll be getting my feet under me, building a customer base, etc so I can start my own brokerage. I have already asked the question of what makes a good broker on here.

My question now, is what are the actual operating expenses per mile? I am working on rate stuff, and some of the rates I have been finding seem pretty low. I want to be able to base rates off of real world operating expenses so that I can be sure to be booking loads that will actually get taken. I've done some searching on here, and found a few, but I want to hear it from as many of you as I can.

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I didn't say it was your fault, I said I was going to blame you.

Dynamite comes in small packages, Nitro comes in smaller ones, take your pick!

I don't have a good handle on it right now. Being out of O/O for the time being.

How ever here are some ideas.

Price of fuel ($4 average) divided by 6 (MPG) gives you a cost of .67 per mile, subject to go up very easy. .40 a mile for O/O wages, a little low.
Then you have maint, truck payment/replacement insurance, taxes, tags etc etc. Its easy to reach $2 a mile with out a lot of effort.

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My costs last year were $1.84/mile. With the increased fuel cost this year it will be higher.

I've been in left field many a times, so here goes yet again.

The actual operating expenses are absolutely none of your concern regardless if you are advocating for the shipper or the transportation company.

I say this because if you are the agent for the shipper your job is to get the freight hauled as cheaply as possible while making a living for yourself

and

if you are the agent for the transportation company your job is to find the best paying freight for them while taking enough to make a living for yourself.

In either case the truckers actual expenses are not your problem or concern...

now if you are a broker who contracts for himself... it would seem you'd want to bid the jobs to the shipper as high as possible and then get them hauled as cheap as possible and keep the difference for yourself...

in this case only, knowing the actual operating expense, would be of use to you...

sorry if that seems rude, it isn't meant to be at all...

its just an observation that there are three people involved here and you kinda have to pick a side as advocate from the middle.... its me and the shipper or its me and the trucker... or its all me and screw everyone... lol

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Though your argument is very clever, I don't think it will lead to the results you desire. gandhi

In my case, as a broker, I am working for the drivers. I do sort of take offense at your post, as I am trying to obtain legitimate information so that I can book freight that truckers are going to want to haul, and know what the bottom line is so that I can tell a shipper that is trying to negotiate a lower rate that their rate won't even meet operating expenses.

I have come across a wide variety of per mile operating costs, so what would be a good rate for one won't be a good rate for another. Freight out of different states carries different rates based on what goes into and out of the state. Telling me that it's none of my concern is like telling a person that it's none of their concern what an oil change for their car is going to cost or what replacement parts for a car a going to cost. I am seeking this information in an effort to be a good, trucker friendly broker - as you will see in the thread linked below. If I don't know the basic operating expenses, then how can I make sure that my rates are going to work for everyone, especially the truckers. This information gives me the knowledge to know what rates are just too darn low, which gives me the power to tell a shipper that I won't be able to make arrangements to get their freight hauled. It's a useful tool to help me make sure that cheap freight is eliminated.

What do you want in a broker?

Check out this thread listed above if you want to see where I stand as a future broker.

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I didn't say it was your fault, I said I was going to blame you.

Dynamite comes in small packages, Nitro comes in smaller ones, take your pick!

Try useing a spreed sheet like the one supplied on OOIDA. This should give you a decent overview of the different areas or daily cost a driver has to deal with on a daily basis. In addition, you can plug in a desired cost, income or mileage. Good Luck!

Can that be accessed without being a member? It sounds like a good tool to play around with.

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I didn't say it was your fault, I said I was going to blame you.

Dynamite comes in small packages, Nitro comes in smaller ones, take your pick!

Your operating costs will vary with the age of the truck , they type of trailers you pull and where your pulling the loads.

Rull of thumb is to take your operating costs and divide by .79 that gives you the BARE MIN $ amount you can work for and realize a bit of profit.

No memebership required. Simply go to trucker tools then press OOIDA cost per mile spreedsheet, then click microsoft exel 2007 spreedsheet.

they want to haul the best paying freight you can book for them, even if they are getting free fuel and have no truck payments.

why??? do you think the shipper cares???? he just wants his freight moved as cheaply as possible!!!

wrong, just take the most expensive per mile cost and pay that guy enough to haul it... the guys with lower expenses will make even more and be even happier.

no it is not like telling a person what an oil change costs !!! It is exactly like having a person ask what one costs and then you asking in return, well how much do you make a week??? ya see we normally charge 29 bucks but if you're a single mom I'll see if the boss will knock it down for you... or we normally charge 29 but since you are a dr. making a 100k, well then for you it is $99...

Quite obviously, if nobody will haul your freight then it is priced too low!!!

Tell them it is too low every single time and when their final answer to you is: "I'm sorry we just can't pay that much, we'll have to call XYZ broker." then you'll know that if xyz can get it hauled for that much then so can you... because quite frankly the shipper isn't doing business with you because you pay your drivers better than xyz, they are doing business with you because you are better for them the shipper, ie cheaper, or can meet a specific schedule they have.

cheap freight is only eliminated when the trucker quits pulling it, not by you not posting it. If you don't post it at the shippers price they will move on down the list to the broker who will...

BUSINESS IS NOT AN ALTRUISTIC ENDEAVOR. you aren't planning on working for minimum wage are you? afterall... somepeople can live like that...

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Though your argument is very clever, I don't think it will lead to the results you desire. gandhi