bennett driveaway?

Discussion in 'Motor Carrier Questions - The Inside Scoop' started by grayghost, Apr 6, 2009.

  1. grayghost

    grayghost Bobtail Member

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    Nov 8, 2007
    jtown,ky
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    Has anyone heard of or dealt with bennett driveaway out of georgia?
    Looking for any info besides there web site.
    Thanks
     
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  3. chief

    chief Heavy Load Member

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    Jul 15, 2007
    Flavor Country, NC
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    is that the company that used to put ads in the newspaper all the time? I think I called them once. 1099 ("independent contractor,") and it's up to YOU to figure out how to deliver the vehicle, THEN, find your OWN transportation to wherever your next vehicle is (and YOU have to find another vehicle that needs to be moved too!!) but I can only imagine that with with the complete absence of any kind of support or direction or benefits, that the pay surely must be outstanding from this company (well, you're not really working FOR a company, you're an "independent contractor," remember?)
     
  4. wwfd1220

    wwfd1220 Light Load Member

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    Mar 26, 2009
    Whitewater, Wisconsin
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    my ex-wifes dad drives for this outfit, or used to anyways. he would have to pull at least 2 trucks to even make any money with this company... i used to go with him during my winter layoffs. all i have to say is that you better hope you can get a return delivery, or else you will spend what little money you make getting back home.. i guess most of these driveaway guys are hooked up with several different companies. optimizing there chances of getting trucks that need to be moved
     
    rolling558 Thanks this.
  5. JACC0811

    JACC0811 Light Load Member

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    Jun 12, 2010
    Dayton, OH
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    Can anyone tell me anything up to date about them. My dad used to work for them about 16 years ago and I've recently applied to them. I spoke with some one long enough to get some details about my application straight, but that's been about it so far. I read on a job ad that they pay 65% of linehaul, but that doesn't tell me much, so does anyone know what typical pay is per mile? And even though your an independent contractor through them, and all expenses are your responsibility do they offer any benefits through the company or some special group rates? If not, does anyone have a ballpark figure per wk, mth, or year for a family of 4, non-smokers, under 35. What about plates and permit fees?

    Any other details someone might have on them would be great.

    I'm just trying to get some up front figures before I accept or decline working for them.

    Thanks!
     
  6. ambivalence

    ambivalence Medium Load Member

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    Jul 9, 2009
    Cleveland, NC
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    The majority of the people working for independent driveaways loose everything and end up at Traveler's Aid. The 'motivated' ones know where and how to steal fuel, live out of truck stops and rest areas. Some even hold up banks and convenience stores to get their 'operating funds'. Find something else to do.:biggrin_25524:
     
    akfisher and JACC0811 Thank this.
  7. JACC0811

    JACC0811 Light Load Member

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    Jun 12, 2010
    Dayton, OH
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    Well, I don't have to worry too much about that now. They couldn't hire me because my experience wasn't recent enough. 3 1/2 years was too long. Oh well, I've moved on to some other prospects.
     
  8. Moose1958

    Moose1958 Road Train Member

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    Dec 17, 2010
    Williesburg, Virignia
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    I am one of the unfortunate ones that worked for the driveaway division of BME. I hired on in May of 1996 and worked through oct of this year. Then begin my class A CDL training at C1 and now am working for USA Truck. If you like to sleep in trucks and by trucks I mean across the front seat if you can get a full front seat, if you like being lied to about trucks being ready for pickup, if you like making .43 a mile plus a small fuel sir charge and having to eat ALL your expenses including fuel, if you love to ride in greyhound buses and taxis, if you love to get abused by the central dispatch in georgia, if you have a nice vehicle that you want to destroy towing it behind you, if you want agents giving choice loads to their favorite drivers leaving you with crap, if you want to spend all day up in new england paying tolls out the yang yang with maybe $25 left as a profit, if you want to work for a lady that has NO and I mean NO regard for her drivers and is only building an empire and laughing all the way to the bank. Then Bennett Driveaway is for you!! This is not sour grapes with me. I did make a little money from 1996 till around 2005 after this it become impossible to make a decent living. I have been lied to by both their safety dept as well as the general driveaway division. The only reason I stayed as long as I did was 1 person. I did get to see the country and learned some important things I use today with USA Truck, however I was flat broke when I quit them. I could not in good conscience recommend BME to anybody. Its closer to slave labor then a job, and you can FORGET making any money there unless you are a pet driver of central dispatch or an agent.
     
    tarmadilo and JahB Thank this.
  9. Moose1958

    Moose1958 Road Train Member

    14,726
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    Dec 17, 2010
    Williesburg, Virignia
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    Me too. If I knew back in 1996 what I know now I would have went right into driving an 18 wheeler. As I said in my first post I did OK with them till around 2005. After this year they started losing contracts and they lost 3 that ruined things for me. It became almost impossible to get "round trips", and since 2006 their average number of loads especially in the southeast dropped and they still kept on hiring drivers. This finally got to the point it became next to impossible to get any kind of a load, and I finally just stopped trying. Like I said you WILL REGRET hiring on as a contractor with this POS company. Don't fall for the hype and the crap they put out, you WILL lose money.

    Let me change gears a minute and tell of a situation I had with this company. In 2000 my tow vehicle became disabled in Ruston La. I burnt up the 5 speed transmission in my S-10. If my memory serves me right the cost to get a replacement, get it shipped and installed was around $1200 this also included the tow truck. I had almost $800 in the bank. This dropped to around $730 by the time I paid for a hotel room and some food. I called one of the managers in the driveaway division and asked for $600 to help me get finished and get home. I basically was told that they had had problems with drivers getting money and quitting. Remember by this time I had been with then for almost 4 years and up till that point never asked for a dime. I finally had to call and ask my mother to deposit some money in my account so I could pay the mechanic for the repair.

    Another situation that describes these people happened in Chicago back in 2007. Bennett had been hired by Paccar (the company that makes Kenworth and Peterbuilt trucks) to move several trucks back to the southeast. When I got there I found out I was the first driver to arrive. The next driver was scheduled to arrive the next morning. The truck they had assigned me on was not ready and would not be till later that day. There was 2 trucks ready but dispatch would NOT give me one. They was too darn lazy to make a simple change and help me out. I got so mad that I just said give the truck to another driver and I deadheaded to Ohio and got a load going south. This or a variant of it has happened to me more times then I want to count. I also feel very strongly that NOBODY should be working in their central dispatch till they have driven out on the streets and know what its like to be thousands of miles from home and get told to "go to hell" by the company.

    The Bennett agents are also a piece of work. Back when I first started in 1996 several of us drivers including the agent from Charlotte NC were moving freightliners from Cleveland NC to the Penski in processing center in Reading Pa. After this we worked our way back to I-95 and then I-85 to a small town just south of the Va NC line. We was dropped off by the agent whom left before it was determined our trucks were ready. As it turns out they were NOT and I had to sit at that facility along with 3 other drivers ALL DAY after being up ALL NIGHT. Once getting the truck and driving I had to stop and get a hotel because I was so tired I was unsafe driving.

    Another bennett agent assigned me to a load told me where it was going and loaded up my transcash card (old greenback system) with my advance. When I got to my destination I was informed that the truck was NOT in the right place and when I called this agent I was told I got the wrong truck. Being the last person on the totem pole I had to eat the cost. If my memory serves this cost me around $300. This same agent just before this asked me to run a truck to a body shop in Dry Ridge KY. This was before I used a tow vehicle for transportation. I was told by this agent this place was a short bus ride from Cincinnati Oh. Turns out it was NOT and it cost me a $150 cab fare to Lexington Ky.


    After almost 14 years of working with this company and their idiot agents I could spend all day writing horror stories. I am not a perfect person, I made plenty of my own mistakes and paid for every one of them. What peeved and still peeves me off is the driver has to pay for their mistakes too. So here is some sage wisdom honed from 14 years with this company. Run,, don't walk away. This company and its owner would not know the truth if it bit them on the backside. You can't depend on them when you need them, for the most part the agents tell you lies. I can't count the times I could not get either a phone number or delivery address from an agent.
     
  10. 2roadworthy

    2roadworthy Bobtail Member

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    Jun 17, 2011
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    I was recently in contact with them, trying to get hired in their class B division. As a bus and straight truck driver, you probably can't make any money at all, because you'd have to pay to get somewhere else wherever you go.

    If you're a trucker and can haul a toad, that's a different story, but for someone like me, who'd probably also be on the lower side of the pay scale ($0.32-0.46 / mi,) you can't possibly make any money unless you have a very supportive person who follows you in your car and at that, you'd both be splitting minimum wage.

    Let's say I go 300 miles at 32 cents a mile. That's around $90. It could take me 6 hours of my time, which is around $10 an hour or something of the like. and THEN, i have to pay out of that, to get to the next job, which is who knows where, or home. The longer the haul is, the worse your deal.

    I just can't possibly imagine how anyone could absorb any money at all on this pay scale. It sounds like an expensive place to work. But maybe for you class A'ers, if you have nothing better to do with your license, you could make something. It wouldn't be much though, I'm sure. :biggrin_2552:
    If it were possible to make anything in this thing, I'd like it for the flexibility but; in my scenario and possibly yours; there are better student summer jobs out there.

    It really sucks how the people who have the jobs dole out the money. Something's gotta give.
     
  11. prime rib

    prime rib Light Load Member

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    Aug 28, 2010
    Blakeslee, PA
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    I honestly can't see how people continually fall for this scheme.
    All these driveaway outfits are pretty much the same.
    YOU pay for the fuel.
    YOU have to find your next haul and pay your own way to the pick up point.
    YOU have to pay your own way back to home port if you can't find a backhaul.
    YOU have to pay for the wear & tear of your own towed vehicle.
    YOU pay all your living expenses enroute (i.e.; food, showers, etc.) .
    In the end you will spend whatever you made for all of the above and
    probably go in the hole besides.
    You would have to make at least a buck or more a mile to see any reasonable profit.
    When I asked the recruiter about all these issues he said, "those are VERY good questions".
    He never gave me any good answers.
    This gig might be good for a retired or semi-retired person.
    But if you're trying to feed a family it's not the way to go.
     
    Last edited: Jun 18, 2011
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