Western Express Flatbed Lease

This forum is quiet...you still rolling big guy...

 

If not being able to work for 30 days put him behind on payments a guy is either blowing his money, or being paid way too little. To be so far behind that catching up isn't possible...well those settlement checks must of been awfully thin.

Boils down to one of 3 things.
1: a guy can't manage his money.
2: truck expenses ridiculously high.
3: extremely cheap rates

If 1, it's a problem with the individual.
If 2, is a problem with a horrible lease purchase contact.
If 3, it's a problem with the carrier.

My bet it's a combination of 2 and 3. Another case of of why lease purchase have gotten the nickname flease purchase.

 

Ok first off I do not drive anymore. I just missed 3 weeks of work because of pneumonia and had absolutely no money problems. I worked with pneumonia for 1.5 months. Now I did work in 50 degree conditions but had to suck it up and keep going.

My point is things happen. What if something went wrong on the truck and you have to come out of your pocket with it. It doesn't appear that you couldn't do that either. If you pretty much lived on the road where did all your money go?

 

For some of us, its a chance to start over. After my experience at Raider Express, I couldn't find a OTR company to take a chance on me. I called FFE and they had the nerve to tell me that I am in essence, what recruiters like to call damaged goods and it would be very hard for me to get a job again.

Transport America suggested I go back to school and see if that route works. I already have my CDL, why would I need to return to school and what is going back through school going to be? a magic pill that gets the stink of Raider Express off of me???

Some of the threads about Western Express are eye openers and for many of us who need an opportunity, we can overlook things and when we get experience, we move on.

For me, I like the idea of being my own boss and in essence, we are owning our own trucking company. For many of us, to come up with a huge down payment for a good piece of equipment will never happen unless we win the lottery, so for me, this program works and for others, I am guessing the same.

 

That's why you save and then buy your own truck! You don't own the truck you are leasing so how are you your own boss? You can't pull freight wherever you want and your destiny lies with your DM! Explain this to a young'n like me!

 

KaoMinerva,
First off, good questions and I will do my best to answer them. I would hope that your pessimism about Western Express is not based upon what you have heard from a few people that think they can speak for every driver out there.

The average down payment for a good truck is in the neighborhood of $10,000.00 and in this day and age, it is not easy to save a dollar, so to save 10,000 of them is not easy.

Secondly, most of these trucking companies offer a lease program, where you pay for a truck that you will never own, no matter how hard you work.

Western Expresses program is a lease to own program. Under this business model, there really is no difference between a loan and a lease to own. A loan, you can't walk away from, a lease to own, you can. A qualified driver can get into a 2016 Freightliner Cascadia for zero down and no credit check, and mileage rates of around 1.85 to 3.00 a mile.

I will use my previous experience as a company driver to make a point. When I was with Raider Express as a company driver, I was making .32 cents per mile. I was running 2800 to 3100 miles per week, so my gross income was $896.00 a week average. I was running hard miles for no real money.

Under Westerns freight rates of $1.85 and I will use this because I doubt $3.00 a mile is on a regular basis and doesn't come without me having to give up something. Using the numbers just mentioned, that is $5,180.00 before expenses.

If expenses and taxes, etc are at 70%, then my weekly take home would be $1554.00. Big difference in pay. This program works for me, it may not be good for you and regarding hauling freight wherever I want, here is my take on that.

There are many owner operators who get to do that and go broke, because they have zero businesses doing that. This is a business and there are certain skillsets you need to do well in order to survive.

 

Bro, I'm sorry to hear this, hope all is well.

 

Jaw healed eating again and all but a longe few months!