The Feds Just Announced All Lease Purchase Deals Should Be Banned

Well, I never signed one. Was a company driver for nearly two decades but have gotten out of trucking. I did know some drivers who leased on with a certain company and years later that company was going under and when they had to turn in the trucks many of them got 20-30 thousand dollar repair bill. And it was a rip off, I saw many of those trucks and if a rock chip was on the bumper it was 4 grand; and oh there’s a tear in the passenger seat that’s 3 grand. And it was just a way for them to fleece them one last time. Many of them refused to pay it and it ruined their credit. There are many such tales. And if a government study is saying 99% of them aren’t owning the truck than it becomes a real reach to blame the driver.

 

Oh, definitely. That's how they operate but if a driver is stupid enough to agree to it in writing it's not fraud. I've turned down company jobs and contractor opportunities in the past because they wanted me to agree in writing for similar things.

Of course when I've questioned it I was handed attempts to downplay it like it only gets charged for "neglect" or some other ridiculous angle to sweet talk me into agreeing. I always refused though.

If I did agree and got charged I would of had noone to blame exempt myself. It's the same thing with BCAs and broker's fees. Carriers sign/agree then cry when they get hit.

Stop agreeing to unfavorable terms.

Asking the government to come in and protect you from yourself steals everyone's freedom in the end.

 

Predatory lending has always been highly regulated if not completely illegal.

It’s not asking government to protect you from your self if you want those same standards and laws applied to the trucking industry.

Respectfully it’s arguments like these in which drivers are arguing in favor of their own destruction that are the reason I got out of it.

These trucking companies are taking advantage of desperate people with no college degree and often no high school diploma and poor grammar and reading skills and putting a huge novel of a contract in front of them while their making it out like you get to be some special super owner operator now oh look at you big dog moving up in the world and look at all the money you’ll makes.

But most of these fleeces are tantamount to the driver paying the overhead for them plus interest.

Time for drivers to stand up for themselves and their industry and get these leases written in a way in which most who sign them actually end up owning the truck and with minimum guaranteed of miles and income.

Either that or make them completely illegal and watch driver and real OOs salaries increase while bottom feeding leasing companies go under.

 

If something is a rip off it’s ok that it exists if it’s regulated? Payday loans are one of the biggest scams around but they exist, nobody is calling for them to go away. Car loans keep getting longer and longer but everyone is fine with that. Credit cards with interest rates approaching 30% are fine? But crybaby truckers want the government to step in because people don’t have the smarts to stay away from a lease purchase. Got it.

Other than sub prime mortgages, what on the list I’ve given is regulated by the government on a federal level?

 

Your statement about predatory lending isn’t accurate, at least on a federal level. A quick google search shows payday loans apr rates of over 300 to over 400 percent except in the few states where they are regulated on the state level. And in those cases it was voted on by the citizens and wasn’t simply thrust upon them by the almighty government.

Also, if someone wants to play owner operator with a rental truck there most definitely should not be minimum pay. That goes against everything that is running your own business. It should be up to the person ti sink or swim.

I have no college degree and not once have I entered into a contract that I didn’t feel was fair for me. I’ve had stacks of paper in front of me and I didn’t sign them until someone else looked them over. They think they’ve found a shortcut to fast money and that’s why they sign up. And truth is without any skin in the game they’re set up for failure from day one, but that doesn’t mean the government should step in. Investments with low risk (in this case no money down and no credit check) rarely pay off.

 

This is interesting, has there been any mention of when a decision would be made?
To be honest I don't know much about the trucking industry. My husband is a driver and we have been building a plan to purchase our own truck and grow a company from the ground up. I have been trying to learn as much as I can which is one of the reasons I joined this forum. Also, because I would like to get my CDL so I can drive with my husband even though the thought of it terrifies me to my very core, and I thought this would be a good place to get some insight from female truckers. Anyways, I will say that from the limited research I've done these large companies are gifted with making these programs sounds like spectacular opportunities to someone that doesn't know better and hasn't done enough research. I really appreciate this post because it's full of helpful information for beginners trying to navigate the inner workings of the industry. My husband has a lot of great knowledge, but he's the driver so his focus is primarily on driving, mine is to handle the back of house operations so to speak, that way he ONLY focuses on driving. I don't want his mind distracted while he's literally hauling 30 tons of whatever through the mountains of Colorado in winter. While I absolutely believe we should be allowed the freedom to make our own decisions, good or bad, I also say the government has a responsibility to lookout for its constituents and protect them from predatory business practices. Just because someone has the freedom to make a financially detrimental decision doesn't mean the governing authorities should just sit by and let it happen.

 

Right. Everybody's a victim. Victimhood mentality is a cancer. Low IQ individuals should not be allowed to drag everyone else down with them.

 

If you think I have a low IQ I can tell you I’m enrolled in an accredited 4 year university taking stem courses and am in the top 5% of my class. I’m also a gulf war veteran with an honorable discharge and national defense medal.

And my IQ tells me if 99% of the drivers aren’t ending up owning the truck it’s a scam.

But you keep on arguing in favor of the low lifes whose job is to screw the driver over.

Doesn’t seem to me the kind of thing a high IQ individual would be doing. Most professions want their industry to have a good reputation.

 

What would the ownership percentage be if they required a down payment and it wasn’t a walk away lease? What percentage of people decide they want to take 2 weeks off because they’re playing owner operator and want to call the shots but they don’t have the money to take two weeks off? So they end up behind and once they don’t see a way out they give the truck back and move on to the next one. What percentage of people fail at one lease only to go to another company and sign right up for another lease? And another one after that?

The people asking the government to protect them from their own choices will simply make additional poor choices in the future. If the lease purchase goes away I doubt those people who will be protected from making a bad choice will suddenly have the credit and down payment to get a truck on their own.

My main issue is that when it comes to ELD’s or speed limiters or any other regulation all we see is how the government needs to stay out of trucking. But then people who aren’t good at simple math want the government to help when it comes to lease purchases and brokers.

 

Back when I was young, there were no CDL licenses. If you had a license, go ahead. Then they regulated who could get behind the wheel.
Nowadays, many people have a medical marihuana card. I'm glad they have laws protecting us from stoners behind the wheels of 80,000lbs.
There are lines the government lays out as to what's legal. Why is the government telling me to change my steer tires when there's plenty of tread left? Why do companies have to inspect vehicles every year? I check mine before every trip. That should be enough. Why do they require insurance? Shouldn't that be optional? Why aren't companies allowed to skip having workmen's comp? Let people be responsible for themselves.
There are regulations in all aspects of life. Some here have decided a very limited area of regulation is destroying their freedom.
We are all part of society. We have all decided to be a part of it. I suppose there are a few off-grid people in this country, fending for themselves, self-sustaining in the wilderness. But none of them are on the internet here.