Give me step by step to get started in hotshot trucking please.

Insurance should be a top priority. I have a perfect driving record and have 6 years experience but it took me a few weeks to find insurance that wouldn't cut me in half. If cash isn't a problem call progressive, they'd probably give my 3 year old a commercial policy.

 

I been leased to a company that decided last month that they didn't need me any more. So I an in the same boat, I have started my own company as of last week.

I have been told by a TX dps, Houston pd and Pasadena pd that if you pull a trailer for hire, regardless of gvwr you must have a CDL. I have also had to go pick up another drivers truck from a weigh station and off of the side if the road because they didn't have a CDL. YMMV of course.

From what I have found in this endeavor so far, is there isn't much difference between running a 3500 with a trailer and running a big truck except the maintenance cost and the amount of cargo you can carry. Everything else is pretty much the same.

I wish y'all the best of luck!

Nick Bray

 

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Will a 26000 lb rig need IRP and IFTA?

No it will not, but some DOT officers don't even know that and will give hefty tickets to trucks registered at 26k with combined GVWR over 26k because even they don't know that GVW and GVWR are 2 different things.



If the truck is say a 3500 but plated only for 26k, does that keep it from needing a CDL? He'll be pulling a flat like I said above. Not interested in the oil field.[/QUOTE]

No, how the truck is plated relates only to IFTA and how much you can roll across the scale with (GVW)

CDL requirement is dependent on GVWR. That is the combined GVWR on the sticker on the door of the truck and on the trailer. Together they can not be over 26k regardless of how the truck is plated.

You will have a hard time finding a combo for freight hauling that will be under 26k GVWR. You might be able to do a 3 car wedge if you find a light one, but Florida is a dead zone for small car carriers so you won't make money there.

Mitch
M.R. Cars Auto Transport

 

Regardless of what type of truck, be it hotshot or big rig, you DO NOT need IFTA or IRP!
You just have to stop at each state port of entry and purchase fuel and trip permits. Some states make you purchase permits before entering their state.
Plating the pickup at 26k will work in most states without a cdl, however in some states you need a cdl if your attached trailers GVWR is plated over 10,000lbs regardless of what the truck is.
Everything we have is on CA plates, no IFTA or IRP, 95% of our work is within the state but we may change next year as it would be cheaper to plate for 48 states than CA on its own just to start with, not to mention the fact we buy the most expensive fuel so the quarterlys shouldn't require a paycheck.
I don't know how your situation is but IMO if your going to be in this business no mater what truck or state you should probably get a CDL.
Good call on having your brother get his own authority, that gets tricky if something were to happen on yours and based on the dings he already has, most lightly something will, especially if he didn't have to go to the hassle of getting his own authority.

 

Fortycal, to answer your questions he will not need a cdl if plated 26k or less. In Al. the truck plate is the combined weight, don't know about Fl. The trick is you can pull a 20k trailer but if you buy it new have the dealer rate the trailer down so the GVWR on the truck plus the GVWR on the trailer equal 26k. I left Landstar in 2004 to go back in construction and in 2011 came back on the road. I started with a dodge 3500 and a 40 ft dual tandem. Even though I had a cdl I plated for 26k just to not have to deal with IFTA and all that. I was leased to a fellow so didn't have to deal with insurance or any of that. You know trucking so everything else is pretty much the same. Pm me if you have any other questions. Have a good one!

 

If I plated my truck and trailer CGVW at 26K, I wouldn't even be able to haul 10K worth of load. I would be at a little over 16K with the truck and a 6k+ trailer. Not sure that would be feasible in my book. Is IRP and IFTA that big of a deal to mess with?

The door sticker on the truck goes up to 32K, and the trailer would need to have a sticker of 10,000 or less. If it is 10,001 in Indiana (my state), I will need a CDL and IRP/IFTA.

 

No, my truck weighs 10K and a trailer is a little more than 6K I believe. If I plate for 26K that only leaves me 10K for freight. Truck is an F450.

 

Yeah my dodge and trailer weighed 15,800. I could haul right at 10k. Mostly I did LTL pieces. I have a friend that lives in IN and he is non-apportioned. Stays plenty busy hauling 10k or less. I decided to go back to reefers so I got rid of my little stuff and bought a Pete. We hauled a lot of LTL freight for LS that paid a good truckload rate and a lot of other folks. Just like anything else, got to negotiate the rate you want.

 

All what weight was your trailer registered at?