Stories of brokers taking commissions on loads as high as 65%, plummeting spot rates, and truckers losing money on brokered loads of emergency supplies are making the rounds. Wildcat protests have popped up in Los Angeles, Chicago, and Washington, DC. Even President Trump has weighed in via tweet on the situation. So, we want to hear from you! What do truckers think of the current broker situation?
Carriers want a fair Shake. We are supposed to get tarp fees, fuel surcharges, and extra fees for additional equipment or services, we’re not seeing any of these, the brokers are saying it’s all in the rate. Wrong, it’s not part of the rate. If a broker charges a customer fees for any thing the fees should go to the carrier no the broker, then the broker should get no more than 10% of the load fee and nothing else.
In the first place truckers are under paid by a lot & the CEO & brokers are getting rich or very wealthy wile drivers are struggling
Yes but also carriers , I am a lease o/o ?? I pay everything on that truck I mean everything and they take still 25% off all loads sometimes $1200 of a load that pays $3600 and They let me pay also $500 Adm fee per month.
Exactly.. I am a broker but i worked for 6 years and 3 different companies on the trucking side (never do that again) and I saw the worst of humanity and met who i am convinced to be great great great grandkids and the direct blood line satan himself. As a broker we are paying stupid uncalled for ridiculous rates I mean its just out of control… yet you still hear drivers constantly whining about not getting paid enough. The issue is these scumbags running the trucking companies are pocketing all the profits and lying to the drivers about the rates. When i worked for Haulmark Trucking out of Houston I was forced to do all sorts of the shadiest dirtiest stuff and lie and cheat ppl i considered friends. We would get a customer load that paid great and the owner ops were supposed to get 60% of that but the owner of the company would force the broker side of the office to broker it in office for much much less cheating the owner op out of thousands per load. If we didnt do it we were fired on the spot. I worked there for 3 years and in 3 years he fired over 100 office staff for so much as taking one to many bathroom breaks.
That is correct any fees for tarp, fuel, detention, etc., are called accessorial (spelling wrong) and are billed separate from freight charges but should be shown on the rate confirmation, BOL, and the Broker’s billing to the shipper, which you should get a copy of.
You generally will have to tell or ask the broker for those funds in order to get them though.
The broker does normally charge those fees to a shipper but you usually will not get them if you do not ask.
Make sure when you ask for them that they show up on the rate confirmation.If you ask the broker for a paid copy of his billing and he sends you one (most brokers will not supply one) be sure to double check with the shipper to see if that was actually the amount(s) paid to the broker.
It may take extra time and effort on your part but is the only way you will know you are getting paid properly.
Always due your homework and check all. Complacency costs YOU money.
Your absolutely right .
They have to make less then 20% per load
Most brokers do rip truckers off. Most don’t tell you the truth. I had a load the paid me a $800 found out the broker got $1200 That’s taking too much from us.
Thats complete and utter BS right there… I am a broker and that kind of profit is insanely rare. And how is that ripping you off? We went out door to door busting out tails finding customers who these days dont give a crap about anything other than who can haul our freight the cheapest meaning we are constantly having to defend our service, rates, and on top of that manage all the screw ups and shafts drivers deal us never giving a single care how much damage they cause between us and our customers. The biggest part of this industrys problem are the owners of the trucking companies who lie endlessly to their drivers about rates while pocketing the profits and telling drivers well thats all we could get blah blah. Add to that the fact that millenials and Indians have pretty much finished screwing this industry into the ground and both trucking companies and brokers are screwed.
At the current rates that we have been getting it is just enough to cover the cost to operate my truck. If there is any left over it is not a decent wedge, many times I think I should sell my truck and go work at McDonalds. I would make the same money.
See the truck then
It will be great if if we can share nice precent equally not ripping off us we are doing hardest part moving product :pay for fuel ,pay drivers ,pay maintenc of truck and trailer ,pay dispatch,pay ifta,pay insurance ,pay tool etc
If the brokers continue to rob me ill have to get another trade to support my family. They take to much of the money
and do nothen .
Find another broker.
The “current “ broker situation is the same as it’s always been, brokers are a redundant middle man who just complicates an already complicated industry. I’ve never met a broker who’s house wasn’t twice the size of mine and they do almost nothing
Indeed… brokers should be illegal, or regulated, same.goes for shippers and receivers whom abuse drivers.
Agree with that 100%
Shippers and Brokers are both from the same mold…OR…..share the same DNA..
Truckers need to unionize.
Totally agree we should all get on the same page fight back.
Brokers are killing us.
I do understand that there are some new carriers out there that don’t know their cost of operation and grab whatever they see, specially from brokers apps like Convoy and Uber Freight.
And I think that Uber Freight is damaging the industry with their super low rates.
agreed. And what OOIDA and all those so called assossiations are doing? Nothing.. they dont.care for us truckers, they care for the money big carriers and brokers give to them in order to shut them up
If anyone has been using Uber ride as a taxi recently…if not talk with someone you know..
Uber is extremely hurting their own drivers.. To the point where most if not all the Uber drivers in cars a parking more cars and , claiming Bankruptcy…
This has started back before January 2020 Ex. Pre- COVD19
Could spend 1-2Hours to find a ride, and then wherever you are headed , end up listening to the driver talk about how greedy and difficult it is for them to deal with Uber….because everything is dor the most part automated.
The day I ever haul a load for Uber is the day we owner operators , make a pact to pick up as many Uber loads in our trailers and keep circling around the same area until Uber gets the point and adjust the rates or just toss out the broker agreements, siting the above mentioned law about FULL TRANSPARENCY WITH RATES AND PROFITS.
ALSO , any broker taking more than 20% , even if you work for a freight broker that does… Take a look next time you see American citizens in line for groceries at a local Food Bank…so they can feed themselves and or family…
Bis this the example we want to set after 100 plus years…
State DOT officers and organizations pay attention…..imagine how many trucks will be broke down on highways everywhere with no ## to repair or tow
And then fresh graduates from these stupid drivers training school for CDL drivers. Go ahead and see how putting more and more drivers with no experience on the highways and wat h the accident and deaths from accidents involving drivers with less than 20 months experience.
Plus, all the new drivers thinking $.1.60 is a good rate. How low rates have fallen over the years is really disgraceful.
True rate should be about $ 5.00 dollars a mile or even a little more your trailer alone should make you 1400.00 dollar just for refer trailer on top of that ur miles paid
I agree with you 💯. When the app first came out they had decent rates; but now I would never hook up to one of their loads
Truckers need to unionize
My friend who is also an owner operator took a short run in TX from Houston to Odessa for crumbs, as it only paid $950. The broker said the load only paid $500 as that is “all they had in the load and couldn’t offer more.” My friend, who was desperate for at least $100 to pay for food for the week for his family since everyone was home due to the shutdown via Covid19, took the load for $500. When he delivered the load, he asked the receiver who booked the load how much he paid the broker to get his shipment. The receiver stated $950. So the driver who does all the work ensuring the safe on time delivery, who takes all the risk and who absorbs all the costs associated with getting the load there by fuel costs, truck maintenance, etc only received $50 more than the broker who just sat home and made a phone call!!! (Driver $500 + broker $450= $950 total cost….ABSURD, SINFUL, SHAMEFUL)
Truckers need to unionize.
Amen I agree WE NEED TO UNIONIZE AND TAKE BACK WHATS ARES. Outlaw brokers and get rid of the scum that’s hurting are Industry.
Non-asset based 3PLs need to be eliminated !!!
The head guy of the brokers is trying to blame truckers when truckers do not set the rates. The truckers don’t know the real rates of loads, O/O and lease purchase drivers can be getting ripped off by their own company as well, the middle men dispatch talk to the brokers for us and they should show us the rate sheet. Brokers can also change the rate sheets before they show us and dispatchers to. This has been a problem for over 23 yrs since I’ve been in this business. We are suffering doing the work while they sit on their computers and rip us off!😠
Truckers need to unionize.
Repeating your union message over and over only illustrates your failure to comprehend why it doesn’t happen. Instead of banging on that same, ineffective, tired old message like a mechanical monkey… figure out why truckers DON’T unionize, and do something about it – if you can. If you can’t, then stop crying about what can’t be done, and find something constructive to do, that is actually possible.
I actually had a broker tell me they aren’t changing rates for their carriers who regularly carry for them, but hit and miss guys “like me”, well….. He then said they have to make the money now, because when things open up, they’ll be pumping money into the loads to get them covered . I said so your screwing me because you don’t have lanes I run?? He shut up!
I had a landstar agent ask us specifically not to mention the rate we took a load for with the customer on the recieving end. The rate was $1500. When getting bills signed the manager was in the office with the clerk and just happened to mention what they had paid for the load to be delivered. Much to my shock they paid $3200 to have that load delivered!!! No wonder she didn’t want me to mention it! The customer would have been pissed at being charged so much! I’ve had other requests just like that. A broker told me once that they lost a regular customer because the drivers had disclosed how much they got paid to run the load, meaning they were price gouging customer and under paying the carrier. This deception has to stop if we the small trucking company are to survive.
Truckers need to unionize.
So, you want to install yet another middle man between the shipper and the trucker, because THIS TIME, he’ll be there to look out for the truckers’ interests. That’s the same promise made by brokers, carriers, DoT, and the Department of Labor, already. But you’re still buying this story, from union reps?
Broker rates are to low everyone should go home until rates are adjusted working for nothing not me.
Yes broker are not honest people most of them for sure I have spoke with many of them they are arrogant and they think that drivers owner operators or stupid I have heard from shippers that some of the loads has been shipped late.because broker saying they don’t have owner operator to deliver.or that their truck broke down just two get low rates.
Do away with brokers or go back to reregulatad freight
No, I believe, that is going to far. Deregulation opened trucking up for the O/O and helped reduce inflation.
I agree that brokers should be forced to disclose rates automatically ( we should not be forced to ASK for the load information) and should be limited to a % cap. I think that 20% would be a reasonable cap. I don’t personally know any brokers but I imagine that they work at it harder than we think they do. They have to cultivate relationships with customers at the very least.
I am kind of mixed on this one, I hate what brokers are doing. Everybody is quick to say dont take cheap freight until you get a truck out there and your original back haul cancels and you have to get the truck out of there (raise your hand if you been there in the last month). Having grown up in trucking in the 70’s I also remember government regulation of trucking and freight. It was not always good for everybody. regulation made small fleet owners millionaires (if you knew the right people) deregulation created super carriers and made it really easy to buy a truck and start your own company. It flooded the market with millions of trucks, and rates have been on the decline ever since. sorry for the rambling history lesson
By accepting that cheap load just to move a truck is one of the problems. If you are not making a profit only to profit someone else you really need to look at your business plan.
run trucks across the country long enough you’ll have to do it sooner or later too. I wont sit a man in a truck stop for days. My business model includes retiring in the next 10 years
There ARE NO BACK HAULS !! A load is a load period and should pay as such !! I hear you fellow truckers talk back haul …to me a load is a load and should pay correctly …. we need to put these freight brokers in sleepers , a bottle to piss in , give them kibbles and bits to live on , expect the world from them for little or no pay , take thier money ad fine when they do not make a ridicules check call at some idiot time in the am. Brokers are a outdated illogical concept created before there was technology … time to do away with these leaches and slimline and update the way trucking business is done ….. shippers can deal directly with truckers through the load boards and save money and truckers could make more and actually create a sound business with money to repair and keep thier trucks reliable and safe ……TIME FOR BROKERS TO BE A PART OF HISTORY that no longer exists !!!
Back haul is a generic name in regards to getting a load back to where you desire to be. It is not associated with the rate s being payed. I’ve made more in some instances on a back haul than my original load. It’s about how you negotiate. Honestly when rates dropped so low I deadhead 600 sometimes 700 miles because I spend less fuel and don’t have that heavy load on my back that may cause my truck to breakdown. So I save in the end but the Brokers don’t make a penny off of my truck.
I agree!
Awesome
You make some really good points,
I was an O/O for 37 years.
I NEVER hauled a load “to cover my fuel home”
I am sure almost all of you have been fed that line.
Hauling cheap freight just feeds the monster. The gougers.
Agree 100%
You should retire now, I rather deadhead no matter the distance before I haul a cheap load, I’ve done it several times. I’ve been out here 20yrs and refuse to run cheap freight, since this pandemic I haven’t run my 2 trucks since April 3rdc and I’m still in business because my business plan includes a bottom line break even amount that I must have on any load, I’ve always been profitable so that when stuff like this happen I have the capital to operate or maintain during a crisis, you can’t do what I’m doing if you run cheap freight so again go ahead and retire because you are Apart of the problem Rob P.
Brokers are killing the trucking industry. They should be limited to 5% and show the cost of shipping. They sit behind computer. They don’t have the same fees as a driver (fuel, tires, time, insurance, etc).
As long as the Independent Trucker continues to accept the rate, nothing will ever change. SAY NO TO CHEAP FREIGHT. TELL THE BROKER TO HAUL IT HIMSELF. Why go broke making the broker rich? When the market comes back around we need to Boycott these cut rate dogs one at a time and drive them out of business. Hit the rest in their pocket, Make the rest bleed green.
I there’s no money in brokerage then why are there so many? Non asset brokers have no equipment to move a single pound of freight. They need us, we dont need them.
There are so many, because it costs nothing to start a no-asset freight brokerage.
I know a broker that buys loads at a higher price then sells them for a lot lower price he makes about 95%of the load
Well the problems with brokers is complicated. We have to look at it from both sides first they have to front the money for the load they bid on then they have to collect from the shipper or receiver whoever is responsible for paying. The tricky part is that there’s no true way of monitoring the transactions taking place. I’m sure brokers get beat sometimes also. Also we don’t know how their LC’s (line of credit) are setup and at what interest rates they pay. Again not excusing them. Then also shippers or receivers in these times are having orders canceled or canceling orders. So that makes for low volume then the brokers are low balling each other for loads and thus we in turn do the same to each other.
Then there is the owner operator who is usually not in a position to fight back with any power. So even if you have it in the contract that detention is X amount per hour or layover is X amount per day we have no real recourse because the excuse or so called policy is they will pay up when they get paid by the other end which is usually not immediate that needs to change fast. Then there is the desperate trucker who is living outside their means or is struck by unforeseen hard times as is todays problems everything is at a stand still for go reason at first. Then the bills add up the desperation sets in and then the hauling of cheap freight begins.
To end for myself and I will tell you I’m leased on to a company and literally own my truck I run my business in a way that I don’t live in high debt. If people are operating on more than 1-5% debt to income ratio it’s going to be very difficult to save enough money for times like these to not haul cheap freight and that’s where we are. I have enough cushion to sit for 4-5 months before I have to consider hauling freight just to pay bills living week to week is not a good viable option. Then also way the cost if people are hauling cheap and heavy. If the truck breaks down the cheap and heavy has just cost you more and the debt increased, SO DOES IT REALLY PAY TO HAUL CHEAP FREIGHT?
From both sides get a clue. Like they do…
I was a broker for 10 years. So here is how it works! Almost all brokers are making a killing off drivers or there companies. I never believed in not paying most the money to drivers also been in trucking for 16 years. But as a broker their companies want to make big money so the break down broker gets load let’s say 700 dollars so brokers company wants you to take 25% of the load off the top then that is broke down 60/40 between company and broker 5 minutes work or just a few phone calls hardly any over head either trucking company gets that rate then they take up to 20 percent of that amount leaves driver with pennies . Or leaves trucking companies with pennies after they pay there company drivers ,fuel, insurance etc. to many hands in the pot . When the driver is doing all the work. If drivers seen a broker board they would be furious at what some of them are making for a few calls I’ve seen some brokers make upward 500 to 1000 per load makes me sick . But hush hush businesses makes it ugly.
Brokers never give you the correct price of the load so it should be be system for them to give the correct price of the load or cut them out
Broker Load Boards are not adjusting the current average rates by region.
Broker Load Board Freight rate data history will show the world what Brokers are doing.
Is your current Load Board Rate Data correct?
Is your load board working to help keep Brokers out of Hot Water?
Both Brokers and Truckers pay monthly subscriptions to Load Board Companies. Are they neutral? Or are they worried about disclosing the truth of price gouging.
Example of freight rate history on DAT
L.A. CA to Illinois
$1.69 / mile average
My discovery by calling…
.80 cents / mile.
As someone who struggled to move my first load a year and a half ago I think there needs to be regulation of mega carriers place in the market. I struggled to find a shipper and once I had a load I couldn’t find a truck…
I was working for a carrier css. And they would never give me the real rate that the broker gave them. They said they could not disclose the rates. They said drivers just have to accept the rate that the carrier gives them. At the end the drivers(owner ops) only make like 0.80 to 0.90 cents p-mile. The broker & carrier take all the money. They are crooked (brokers,& carriers..they are the only ones getting rich. Is there anyway that someone can control these thieves? Apparently not. That is why (us)the drivers have to go out on the streets to protest. Too much corruption going on and no one does nothing about these selfish thieves. I wish there was no brokers. All they do is take all the money from the loads and that goes for the carriers as well.
Get your own Authority and cut out the Carrier then your only getting ripped off by the broker.
I believe there is a place for the Broker. I book my own freight for 2 trucks. Some of this freight is direct from the Shipper, but most is from Brokers. A good Broker spends hours each day contracting load from Shippers, then posting those loads on the boards, Calling Trucking companies, taking calls from Truckers, contracting with the Truckers at a fair rate, etc. I don’t have time or the resources to chase loads from Shippers. As it is, I spend hours chasing loads from Brokers that have already done the legwork to contract those loads. I’m not going to weigh in on the comments about cheap freight; that’s not what this survey was about.
I have requested info on Load records citing 49 CFR 371.3, and been flat out denied. There should be Transparency, and any Broker refusing to divulge information on there cut of the loads, should be fined. If every Trucker or Dispatcher requested this info (and was denied), there would be grounds for a Class Action Lawsuit against them.
I believe it should be automatically disclosed by law (un-waivable),we should not even have to ask for it. This’ll the only way that a driver requesting this information won’t be labeled a trouble maker.
Recently I hauled a load from Los Angeles to Scranton, PA. I searched load boards for a back haul all the loads posted was 1.00 a mile some even cheaper. I deadheaded out the area in search for better rates and simply could not find any. It would be nice to have transparency with these broker contracts, in the meantime I’m parking my truck at my yard and waiting this out.
So no one controls these thieves (brokers). They get a very good rate from the shipper per load. And by the time we the drivers get the load, the broker just pays as little as one dollar per mile. That’s very unfair. We the drivers have to pay for everything,,from fuel,tires food, break downs,tickets etc etc,,and the broker just sitting there ,,gets the loads and doesn’t have to spend one dollar on nothing. Can anyone see and do something about these thieves ( brokers)? I don’t really know how the government doesn’t do nothing about this big problem we drivers are having. Can’t they see when these thieves file their taxes,how much the brokers are making and how much a drivers are actually making?? Am a driver and I can’t even buy a house,,every American dream. But I guess no one cares about the drivers. We should stop all the trucks and trailers at one time to see what America would do and look like without the drivers. Shame on you brokers and carriers. You are the biggest thieves out there and yet you don’t have to spend a dollar on maintenance and tickets. We the drivers have families and dreams also.. !!!!
Brokers are taking advantage of people on every load, not just on emergency relief supplies. I have broker buddies that brag about what they make!!! It is more than what the truck drivers are making. Then you have the trucking companies that are also ripping off company drivers with low cpm rates. Its not even worth being a driver anymore. This whole industry is gone down the drain. To a newbie all I can say is “don’t waste your time with trucking”. Please help the whole industry!!! Make trucking great again!!!
From what I have seen over the Years, Brokers are Double Brokering Freight. Which isn’t Discussed either.
That’s right Steve
And I found triple and quadruple brokering.
I don’t think it should happen
They were loads that paid me a fair price
And I didn’t know how many cooks were in the soup until I was under it
It is not discussed because it is illegal.
Brokers ate nothing better than thieves,always have been and will be. Unfortunatly they fill a void that is needed. When these drivers wake up and tealize they ate being boned it will change,but until then it is business as usual. As far as the “Fuel Surcharge” thats a joke. These drivers and brokers make it sound like they are giving you something extra…IT IS THE MONEY THEY ATE ROBBING FROM YOU TO START WITH…also when you get a rate ask them if it is 70% of 100 % or 70 % of 80% ,which is actually 45 % of what the broker is making. So figure it out,he is making 65% if not more of your labor for posting the load..which takes him…what..5 minutes….do the math drivers…you are making what we made 20 yrs ago
True dat. Something needs to be done.
I just think its funny how c.h Robinson just published the c.e.o made over 2 million dollars last year and they want to give us crap about wanting 2 dollars a mile.
Having been in the trucking business for 37 years all brokers given the chance will siphon money off of a load at the expense of the trucker it is a proven game they play ill give an example a 4500 dollar load will be put on the load board for 3000 dollars then the broker will tell you he only has 3200 dollars in it and thats all but he will let you have 3100 dollars for the load
A clear profit for the crook of 1300 dollars
Not the trucker
That’s sounds like TQL.
The Problem I see:
#1 each o/o is a small business with an EIN.
What power do we have? None?
Why can’t we set our own rate for detention, layover etc?
Why are we at the mercy of brokers, insurance companies, shippers, receivers, etc?
#2 Theres NO baseline for rates.
Loads I was making $2900 on last year, now pay less than a dollar per mile, and nothing for stops, detention etc.
The price of fuel is the excuse for cheap freight.. while soaring prices on insurance, and all other o/o expenses remain the same or skyrocket.
Low oil prices? HA! Did oil at the store come down? Tires?
The price of the products NEVER come down, only the rate to haul.
#3
10-20% max is the most any broker should ever make on a load. Since COVID 19, It made more sense to stay at home, either I, or my truck work for FREE. When I did work, RISKING my LIFE and the LIFE of my family. I lost money, EVERY TIME.
Just my 2 cents.
If this continues, nothing but bad luck will come to the industry because it’s wrong, god will not let wrong countiue for long you can bank on that may God help us all
The brokers are BS ing company and companies are BS ing the drivers it never ends, I say F them all
It’s really bad when the French drivers have bigger sacks than the American drivers. Rates and pay for drivers are the fault of the drivers, we can even stop for a day, not even for lower fuel prices. We have always been essential.. they only see it now.
Just adding a little extra to this…
I think were all missing the “other” Big picture here.
I keep hearing Driver shortage… Driver shortage!.
Well the insurance companies are creating this driver shortage problem they dangle lower rates for companies to jump on board and raise the qualifications if a guy has a dui on his record. Some have raised it up to 10 yrs a dui has to be that old. Or in fact have zero duo’s. Now don’t get me wrong if a guy has 14 duo’s I completely understand. But there is some that made a mistake in life. 19 yrs on the road here.. And I’m being crucified. But I’m still working on to meet that 2yr mark of mine being eligible. I know there are some bad apples that are repeat habitual drunk drivers and this may be a good deturant. But there are some
That learned from a bad mistake that have learned a lesson. Sorry just wanted to put that out there.
As far as the brokering setup.
Its gone way outta control with no control from nobody.
I’ve seen double brokered loads to b.s. games of the old “Blind loads”. Just head north and we’ll find a place for you to deliver… Really? That has always seemed shady to me. The crazy thing is most of the brokers are fellow drivers that has got outta the driver seat and found a new seat at a desk working three to four hours a day making thousands on each load till he gets tired of looking at a moniter. Forceing you to run all night to get there when the load doesn’t really need to be there overnight. That old famous “HOT LOAD” Is really a hot load of bullshit…. OOIDA all of a sudden sees these broker rates a problem? They’ve known for years… And Trump is weighing in on this too? Really? I bet he does want to know more… So he can get in on the broker side and get in on this free easy money side of trucking. Also if all these immigrant trucking companies keeps hauling the cheap doubled broker freight. This is gonna still be a brokers money playground.
Look, we have more power than we realize. The only way to stop the carnage is to stop taking loads. We should be organizing a work stoppage. I understand the complexity of doing that but if we, the truckers of America, and I mean All truckers, stop driving for 2 weeks, we could call the shots. Does anyone realize how fast stores, all stores, would dry up without a daily delivery? We are the only ones who can stop this. I realize the financial implications, but can you imagine a broker not making a dime for 2 weeks.
10’s of thousands of trucks pulled over to protest the national speed limit of 55 mph and vowed that food would rot on the side of the road unless the law was changed. We need to stand together and stop hauling this freight for peanuts. Say no, I won’t do it for that price. But it only works if we’re all on the same page. Let’s pick a date and stop driving. Hard choice I know but one that needs to be made NOW.
Was contacted by Coyote Logistics.
He asks me why I didn’t haul for them lately.
I told him, because they paying ridiculous rates. AND THEN HE PROVES MY POINT!!!
Asked me what routes I prefer.
My answer: Anywhere if the pay is good.
He asked me where I’m based at. Got my answer.
Broker: I got a load for you which is only 200 miles away from you. Auburn IN to Laredo Tx. My computer shows that it’s 1050 loaded miles.
Me: Dude, from where I live Laredo is 1700 miles. If load is 200 miles away from me, how in the world it can be 1050 miles from Auburn IN to Laredo Tx?!?!
Broker: Well, that’s what my computer shows me.
Me: Google gives me distance of 1450 loaded miles . And it’s the shortest distance. How can your computer give you 1050 miles?!?!
Broker: Ohh, well, umm. Well, you know, we are working from home now, and that’s where I am now. And I guess I have not the best WiFi , it’s really slow and that’s probably why computer calculated shorter distance.
I didn’t know what to say after that. HE THINKS THAT WE TRUCKERS ARE STUPID AND UNEDUCATED AND WE DONT KNOW HOW TECHNOLOGY WORKS!!!!!!
So basically he wanted to tell me that because WiFi is slow, it gives him shorter distances. Just think about it for a second!
And finally, for my deadhead miles and loaded miles he offered me $950.
For 1700 miles. $950?!??!???!!
Thats Coyote for you!
And how every broker is now!
Since arrival if the Bush administration, the plan to fully implement the complete economic control of freight rates by brokers was implemented. Before Bush there were still some old established lines that brokers would not dare to cross, and the 10% brokerage fee was one of those red lines.
Today, more than 40 years of
Trucking Deregulation have passed, and nobody in the brokerage industry want to hear about the old 10% brokerage fee for finding a truck. The feel emboldened and entitled to the carriers money due.
Brokers feel that a person seating in a boiler room sending a fax and making calls on the phone, deserve to be paid more from a load, than the carrier that is actually hauling the load.
So in their mind, their little BS office work in the AC deserves to be paid more than a carrier, who is:
Picking up a load, transport the load, deliver the load, buy fuel, pay extremely high insurance costs, pay for the driver or the owner operator’s salary, comply with Federal laws, buy tires and brakes for the equipment and to be compliant with DOT.
Personally as an owner operator, I deadhead to a better paying load before I haul a cheap load for a broker. I’m also very careful not to go to areas where I will be under the domain of these brokers because in my book there are no cheap
“Backhauls”, fuel cost me the same going North or South or East and West in a freight lane.
So the question arises: Who in Congress gave the power to the brokers to manipulate so called return rates?
To me a load is a load no matter which way it goes , and if It doesn’t pay an acceptable rate, I do not even entertain the idea of hauling that load.
Fuel, tires and brakes cost me the same $$$, no matter which direction my truck is moving.
So in my case, if I don’t make profit on a load, a broker will not either.
I Control the flow of $$$ for both: the broker and me.
Too bad all the newbies and inexperienced ” leased operators” don’t understand this basic concept.
By the way, we don’t have a shortage of qualified experienced drivers in this country, what we have is a shortage of pay for the company drivers.
Don’t believe it….Look at the waiting list of guys trying to work for WalMart Transportation.
I’ve been in trucking for over 25 year’s.Broker’s need to be regulated as tough as they do the trucker’s.Through out all my year’s I’ve allway’s had problem’s with getting paid for the detention time on load’s when waiting for customer’s.Rate’s have allway’s suffered because of broker’s.This is what lead’s to a driver rushing through the week trying to make up for loss income.This is where the accident’s come from in trucking.Also Insurance companie’s need monitoring also.I’d been with my provider most of my carreer with no accident’s or ticket’s but my premium’s increase every year.Everything is high dollar to be in truckingfrom repair shop,insurance ,fuel and part’s which have all increased dramatically but truck driver pay and respect has not.There also need’s to be transparency and communication between shipping companie’s and Independent’s as myself to be able to negotiate with each other more efficient than with a broker.(In short one should be able to get a response from a shipper about his freight instead of being ignored because your not a broker.
My husband and I decided to go into business for ourselves. We started hauling our first load Aug 2019 and did fairly well. Until dec rates began to fall, brokers like convoy started merging drops. And dropping the rates dramatically, back in dec a load from atl ga to cocoa beach FL paid about 2000.00 just one drop. Then it dropped to less than 900 for 4 drops between atl and cocoa Beach by april 2020. They claim its bc there’s not enough frieght. They deal in food and household commodities, not clothing or furniture. (At least not on a reefer) now your blessed if you get a load paying more than a 1 per mile. We take all the expenses and they get paid a higher percentage wage. Walmart, cosco, publix, etc ha e NOT dropped their prices in the stores at ALL! SO can someone explain how our rates have . I’m no mathematician, but somethi is isnt adding up, I smell something very wrong here,like deceit, greed, selfishness, etc. We havent ran in almost 4 weeks now. Yet our insurance is still needing to get paid. Our taxes are due. Fuel companies are still charging their monthly fees. And that’s just trucking bills ,dont get me started on everyday living expenses. I’ve including my email bc when you decide to strike we want in. When you need support we are in. When you say dont run, we wont run. We need a MOVEMENT that says we ARE NOT MOVING until rates go back up. When we all take a stand that’s when something happens let Americans not get their steaks and potatoes , on the dinner table and watch and see what happens, lmbo. Or toliet tissue to wipes their butts, we have families too, we have children just like these brokers, we take the risk on the road, we take all the expenses. Everything the brokers have to pay for we pay for and more. They have computers we have computers. They have paper clips , we have paperclips. They have to buy loadbroads we have to pay for loadbroads. Oh I forgot , they get so upset when your truck has an issue that was unforeseeable and you call them at least 10 times to inform them that you’ll be late to your drop or pickup and they tell you its 3am . But you can be at your drop after driving 14 hours straight to deliver that covid load and they are calling you a 1000 times to get your ETA. All bc they didnt take the time to read the previous 5 peoes notes that you arrived 30mins ahead of your drop off time. So sorry I’m venting. But email me of you have some suggestions, comments, information, strike information, or whatever. Most definitely some o.o. opportunities. Oh yeah let’s not get started on these companies that are taking almost 40% of o.o. money. Bc they are working under that person’s authority..and fuel surcharge ,and “tire program” plus they take about 200 a week from them to pay for insurance , on top of the percentage. We get cheated all the way around just tring to make a living for yourselves and or our families. “It’s not just sitting on your butt driving. Getting see the country!” That’s a huge joke. How much can you actually see driving interstates, at 70 mph, at night, trying to make your delivery time and searching for the next load or tring to get some much needed shut eye before your next load. Yeah it’s so easy to be a trucker!
I hate what’s going on with the rates at the moment, but I don’t want to see brokers regulated by limiting their percentage of the rate for the load. In my opinion that’s a slippery slope, we as owners are more than happy to grab as much as we can on any given load, and I don’t want anyone limiting what I can make on a load.
It really is easy to say no to cheap freight, I deadheaded home to so cal last week from St George UT also deadheaded home from Salt Lake .
I will not haul cheap freight, sadly others will.
This is a capitalist society, find decent brokers if you have to work with them, build relationships, DON’T haul cheap freight, know your bottom line, if you can’t afford to say no to a load them maybe you should be in a different business!
I hate seeing the rates I’ve been seeing, but worse than that I hate seeing those loads getting covered.
You may as well sit on the couch at home going broke rather than running your arse off trying to catch a penny.
It has been the same since I started truckin in the 80s and it doesn’t seem likely to be changing, probably ever. It is disheartening to ask a broker for a load and ask if they can do better on the rate, they say no, then you find out that they made as much as you did on the load and you did all the work. A fair rate would help keep trucking profitable for everyone, instead of the brokers getting rich and the drivers suffering.
I parked my truck took it completely off the road. I now drive for the company I was leased to as a company driver. Total BS that these brokers..CH Robertson, TQL…many more and to many to mention but they are making money hand over fist off O/O and you can barely cover your expenses. Forget about profit. I’ll wait till everything blows over and put mine back on the road. Meantime I’ll drive this company truck and let them pay for everything. Just not worth staying out 3 weeks for the kind of money I was taking home.
2 is company 3 ( 3rd party) is a round
Some sourt of petition or strike must be done in order to increase wages for all truckers that risk their lives in order to keep shelves filled and finaly be taken seriously.
I think they should be regulated as much as we are.
It was a well known thing in the past that when you get your up front money from the broker, that’s pretty much all you will ever get.
You can beg ,threaten, pay lawyers all to little avail . Then you do the math and you’ve spent more than you recoup.
Uber just reported a net loss of $2.9b in their just released quarter earnings report.
My question is, why are they reporting such crazy losses even as they low ball Uber drivers and Carriers? Is that just mismanagement or over compensating their top management? They’re also announcing some lay offs to “cut costs”.
As a trucker I’m appalled at what I observe. If Convoy and UberFreight are constantly posting low rates for their loads (which I’m aware of) why don’t other brokers offer higher rates? Is it like truckers will chase the lower rates? BS!!! They’re all in this together.
the brokers will keep stealing until something is done about it but they know this will end sooner or later but they wont stop in the meen time they will get all they can
If you do not have a contract that allows you to consistently haul for a real shipper and make a profit you should not be owner operating. Even a low paying FedEx spot will allow you to determine expected income.
If you have a one way contract with a broker loading you back to where you started you still can predict expected yearly margins.
If you spend $150,000 on equipment and merely haul broker loads here and there the guy who loaned you the money deserves to suffer the loss too.
If you work 1099 for a company as an owner operator you may put some cash together if you do not pay your taxes. Why would they give you one of their trucks and forfeit money running it as a company truck unless you can not be hired normally as a company driver?
With the best setup hauling direct for the shipper you still have the risk of everybody in the world cutting pricing to take your work. I have worked both sides of the industry.
Example: Shipper has two shipments (or three) expedited truckload exclusive use. Everything fits on one trailer. Agent combines loads and ships as one truckload with two stop-offs. Agent keeps 26% of one load with stops-keeps two other shipments at 100% also. Agents pay the coordinator percentage of the take which encourages participation.
Other words, like farming, if there is any real money to be made everyone except the owner operator will be enjoying the benefits.
Another example: Company combines LTL shipments at warehouse and ships to their other warehouse and pay owner operators a set rate per mile. I have seen shipments from Columbus, Ohio to Atlanta, Georgia (dock to dock and trade trailers to go back) gross $30,000 with all the FSC included, and pay own-op $1000, or 3%. Yes they have expense picking up, warehousing, consolidating, loading, and last mile deliveries. Point is, if there is money to be had the guy doing everything gets the least.
I never made money in the transportation business until I SOLD MY TRUCKS!
Jimmy Hoffa would not let union carriers use scab labor for any portion of the process. Now we have Kroger, PPG, FedEx, UPS, and a ton of others getting benefits from the fact that most people who own trucks are not connected to the margins. Now Kroger, at $900 per load regardless of destination, with a 225 mile radius and five or six days a week may be enticing. But still you have a broker/agent hogging 20 or more percent for insurance and accounting.
As far as brokers go, the benefit to the shippers is merely whatever they can negotiate. They have expenses too.
You would be better served to open a nationwide brokerage firm exclusive to owner operators or actual company owned trucks.
In reality you should get the best job you can find driving for another, get it out of your system, and get a job later that allows you to be home. Besides missing birthdays, reunions, weddings and funerals, dining out, movies, etc., you cut 10 years of your life off with bad health later. Your wife divorces you, lose the kids and the truck, and sit in a beer joint at 50 years old and share your misery with the rest of the group. God Bless Steve
I have brokers in some of my customers, That post the same loads that I can take and they are cutting up to 40%. And offer no detention pay when they pay 35 dollars per hour on anything on 2 hours. And this customer pays in 7 to 14 days.
My wife is an agent, representing 2 major carriers, and I can tell you truthfully that not only do agents have a ceiling of 8 percent, hers commission is 7.75 with one and just over 7 percent with the other. Not only that, her commission doesn’t get paid until permits and escort fees get deducted from the drivers settlement. Can you just imagine how brokers would scream bloody murder if they were held to the same commissions? Maybe they should be. I can verify that brokers, at least in my experience, keep upwards of 59 percent on military loads. Every ..single…one of those vultures!!!!! How can I prove it? Simple! I can show that the third page of the CBL has the rate agreed to by the broker. Take that amount and subtract what he/she agreed to pay you and voila! Your answer. Most times up to 50 percent, but sometimes up to 65 percent.
That turd in charge of TIA is a complete MORON! He apparently believes that just because MOST drivers aren’t very educated and most suffer from a lack of reading comprehension skills, there are SOME of us who can figure this out, and HAVE figured it out.
I’m not a broker, but have dealt with them quite a bit over the years.
Going by this logic, we should know how much the grocery store profits. Along with anything we buy anywhere…etc.etc
Have had arguments with brokers over rate gouging when requested transparency on load. Was told to accept it or forget it, take what we were offered or would NEVER work again because we would be blackballed nationwide, was told by company leased on with take it or no job. Have been given “Hot” loads said rate con coming. Kept asking for it as being loaded, “really swamped be right with you” got loaded, finally sent different rate from quoted. Was threatened with lawsuit and cost of freight if something happened to it or it wasn’t delivered on time. Rates jumped from over $4 a mile to a $1.50 a mile in 8 months. Because of illegal broker practices we ended up folding our business or we’d be out there now.
Well all we ask is a fair pay per mile considering driver pay fuel and maintenance of the equipment plus all the insurances that a broker ask us to have ao we can book a load with them, WE ARE THE ONES THAT PAY FOR LOAD INSURANCE SO WE DESERVE BETTER PAY PER MILE
I’ve been I’m trucking 12 years. 10 years under my own authority.
There’s a very simple solution, but it starts with contracts.
One of the accounts I service is set up like this. Through a broker. My rate to haul most shipments averages at $3.85/mi. Some higher, none lower than $3.60/mi. The broker I work for takes that figure and adds 14% to it. I’m not the only carrier on the account. That’s the company’s fee. The agent over the account gets 10% of the margin as payment. EVERY load out here needs to be set up like this. With the carrier giving the rate, with the “broker fee” attached. I’ve seen the billing, and know its the truth. Trucking company’s at times are they’re own enemy. SAY NO TO CHEAP FREIGHT.
I firmly believe transparency and adherence to regulation, would eliminate “cyclical” rates. Do I believe enough Carriers will stay home long enough to see it come true?
No…
Do I believe the Government will step in to see it come true?
No…
There are massive donations being handed to politicians right now to squash this from becoming law. You can believe that. I know first hand one company that according to it’s own record. Posted the highest earnings in company history last month. What will ultimately happen is this. The Carrier’s that make it through this are going to remember when the turn comes. When the deck is FIRMLY back in the hands of the trucking company’s. I’m showing “NO MERCY”.
You just need to find a way to “survive”. If that means parking my equipment and suspending my authority until the change happens. So be it.
I do not want to knock O/O or drivers in general on here, but……..
If you buy a truck to go into business for yourself do it the right way.
1st, plan ahead and work in the industry for more than a couple of years so that you can better understand the industry, and make contacts with shippers and consignees, used your eyes/ears for potential customers.
2nd, save as much as you can so you have a “nest egg” when you are ready to make the big plunge.
3rd, you are becoming a business so GET YOUR OWN operating authority, it does not cost that much and is well worth it. Forget about being a lease O/O and stay away from brokers except in an emergency situation. Incorporate as sub “S” or L.L.C..
Use the contacts you have made during pickups/deliveries and through your eyes/ears, while you were an “employee” in the industry, to find loads.
4th, remember you are a business dependent on yourself to succeed.
5th, if you cannot get enough loads on your own (it is hard) Then hire a knowledgeable person as a “commissioned” only sales person.
6th through infinity, REMEMBER YOU ARE A BUSINESS, operate like one, set or negotiate your own reasonable rates, set aside monies for operating expenses, major repairs, rainy day funds and so on. Then be sure you always treat your customers fairly.
Lastly remember you are a business and responsibility is totally yours, common send helps a lot too.
So, what you are suggesting is kind of illegal. Most employment contracts as well as IC Agreements have a 2 year non-compete clause in them. Any customer contacted while working for another company is fruit of the poisonous tree. You can be sued by your former company.
I am an owner operator. At no point on any load does the broker take any or have any responsibilities to assure that the loads are loaded properly and safely. At no point during the trip do they assume any responsibility to make sure the cargo gets to the receiver. At no point during unloading do they take any risk of cargo damage or drivers physical condition. The only thing they do is repeatedly call and hassle us to put pressure on us to get “their” load delivered. So at what point should they make a third or half of what we get to take all these risk and responsibilities?
Lots of complaining here as there always is but nothing will happen you will all still drive for the new low rates. Everyone has now seen what everyone knows truckers are the most divided group in the World . The same complaints are said the World over. But you guys ate so divided it’s rediculous that you come here complaining. You are still taking these low low rates and now the seed has been set. It’s now obvious to shippers how much they have been over paying to move their freight and now realise the drivers drive for $1 to $1.50 a mile no problem complaints yes but the freight moves. They shippers now realise the crooked arse brokers and mega carriers where ripping them off big time. So now all the shippers have to do is offer half of what they have the brokers get their 10 percent and the drivers still get what they get now. Less money but who cares about the drivers they don’t care about each other and will move the freight for less. Plus the shippers saves money the consumers save money with these new low rates and the drivers do what they always do complain complain complain but still crap on each other as ALWAYS
Drivers need a union. Or companies and brokers will continue to rip drivers off.
We as truckers just want a fair shake and not be used by brokers. I feel brokers have a right to make an honest living also. The problem Is they are just middle men. Their cost are minimal compared to running a truck. Everyone is out of touch when it comes to the actual cost of running a truck. We have far higher expenses than brokers and are actually moving the product doing the physical and mental work of the job. Brokers find loads post them and try to make as much as possible with minimal cost. We have wear and tear fuel tires tells road tax fuel expense def expense. Deal with 4 wheelers distributors that don’t have things ready poor communication with brokers as explanation of load being picked up. Directions to pick up. There are so many things truck drivers face daily and brokers just push it on us. We pay for their laziness. We get 1/2 the story of things like need ramps or equipment doesn’t run. Need assistance loading. Those things are left out and we are expected to pick up for their lack of getting proper information. We just want to be treated fairly. There fore I dont think brokers should be allowed to get more than 15% of any given load. Unless they are picking up extra cost such as paying jumpers or loading assistant equipment such as forklift or a piece of machinery. Then cost should be equal to that 15% of gross line haul. They are stealing from our families. It’s not fair. We can only pull 1 load at a time when they can book 1000’s a day and make dam good money if done properly. getting rich on everyone taking advantage of situations just because they can is being a thief. We just want what we deserve. That is all. Running upside down does not allow for good service or even allow the trucker to pay for repairs and service on his or her truck.
Truckers will continue to get ripped off because truckers don’t have a union to protect them. UNION!
The fed should make it mandatory for brokers to disclose the shipper price, broker fees on the rate sheet for every load that’s the only way to keep them honest
With This Pandemic, seems like brokers,and agents are all taking advantage of the situation. Because loads that paid real good know the are paying way less.They don’t want to pay deadhead ,leaving you with a though decision ,for taking a load or being stuck at a place for a couple of days. Cause they are not putting g all the jobs on the board like they use to.I Pray when all this is over .If it doesn’t get any worse.God Bless us all.
I don’t know much about Broker Fees, but I used to drive for a Trucking Company who pays his Divers 8% of each Load and he would pocket the other 92% into his own pocket! I no longer drive for that crook!
lol mega carriers did that often..the new rookie was all the rage and 25 cents a mile created the mega in carriers.
next gimmick is to dump all their experienced victims and go after our fresh HS grads n promise em a pie in the sky lie so they can damage another slew of people and ruin their lives. Kids who shouldve been going to college will be lured away with the BS theyve pumped for years and we will see em lain on the side of the road in tatters. And the blame will be speeding or some other cover up but never will the source of the bad drivers be pointed out. Its all cleverly designed to duck responsibility and bank a lot of money.
The truck driver has been getting ripped off for years as I said once before there should be a minimum percentage of the rate for freight paid to the driver and get rid of the people sticking there hands in the middle of truckers pay.
I’m not new to this industry by starting in around 1978 as a kid, and still doing my job as an independent owner. I just have learned how to adapt and overcome, and not be a victim of this mess fortunately. I transport, buy/sell heavy equipment, trucks, etc. and move all this for customers as well. The only time I consider brokered loads is to get me to somewhere, or back from somewhere. I’ve developed a real dislike for the broker/carrier game and I rarely get involved. Typically I just charge my customers a round-trip rate to ensure that I am profitable in the end. But if this system worked properly and the brokers were more honest and level-headed (or now in these days, the dreaded R word “regulated,”) I’d be able to charge my customers a much more fair rate and actually utilize a brokered load to complete the trip profitably. So in my case, some customers get the unfair shake because I will not deal with dishonest, unscrupulous and crooked brokers and play their stupid games. That’s just me…call it what you may, but if you don’t adapt and learn to be creative in how to make a living, a job might be better for you than this business. You don’t last over 40 years in something unless you’ve learned a thing or two. So I think it’s high time for brokers to be regulated, yes. Real estate and stock brokers are regulated…why not freight brokers.
They should make no more than 10%. That is more than enough for no overhead sales commission. They work on volume. I asked once and was told he would not give me the info ever.
It would be best to eliminate brokers entirely.
I know many see and experience incompetence of many brokers and an acute observer might even detect a common level of arrogance which is usually a product of people reassured they have the upper hand. Every industry that is corrupted by greed another greed comes along to usurp them and people are looking to replace brokers with automation just as theyre looking to replace drivers. A mass failure to uphold standards of ethical practices will always put you in arena to get taken down by another. It becomes tug o war of crooks. Brokers have set themselves up for their own demise. Its unfortunate in that they could have served the industry and made it work for everyone. Some drivers have experienced the ethical broker and fully appreciate the values they offer. Generally you will find proper explicit communications and accurate information that will lead to a clean concise execution of a job with proper pay. But there are so many bad hands in the industry that used unethical practices to grow their business and continue to do so with varying disguises that rates are undermined an unstable.. Too many companies will sacrifice a driver for a few pennies rather than invest in a quality driver that will make a few bucks. TODAY is all they see. How much can i make today. This has become a common denominator across the board. There are few relationships of lasting developments. We arent moving freight. We are hurling it however we can get it out. A rat race. It seems Trumps weigh in was a bit bizarre an addressing matters that had little or no bearing on the issues. I wouldnt bet my future on spazzo policies that arent based on concrete goals.
I’ve seen times that a load is posted at a decent rate. Then it’s taken off the board. Then all of a sudden Landstar has the same load posted at half the original rate.
We all need to go home AT THE SAME TIME for one week.
No public protests, no fighting, not getting arrested, no public displays were they can take your picture and stain our clean records and no public declarations in front of a camera and mic.
Just GO HOME FOR ONE WEEK everybody at the same time, and let them interpret our silence. They’ll get the message.
I can almost guarantee that rates will go up 30% after three days, and 40-50% in one week. Just let the phones stop ringing in the brokerage offices for one week.
Let’s go park our rigs for seven days. But everybody at the same time.
Shall we….?
Remember:
WE CONTROL THE REVENUE for both the brokers and ourselves, with the availability of the equipment, NOT the other way around….Capish?
Let’s ALL GO HOME for one week, just let us know when.
It is called PEACEFUL, NON VIOLENT protest.
No fighting, no public appearances, no road blocks, no arguing with the police and getting towed and jailed…none of that.
Let’s all take one week of vacation at the same time.
Think long and hard about this one tonight.