It's all my dispatchers fault!!!!!!!!

Well I think it is really Prime's Fault.

First How is a rookie supposed to run a buisniess her has no understanding of.

Second You should not have the option of advancing that much out if you have 0 miles.

Third The company store has alsways been a bad idea, I made same mistake at CRST bought CB,cooler,Atlas,Gloves, Truckstop guide, calculater, jacket,and hat.
This all come out in 4 payments of 113 a week.

After you added my Advance of 100 a week wife averaged 219 a week in pay. Lesson learned I survived.
But I feel a Lease should require a year min OTR exp. and the last month of that year them be shown what a lo/o would have made so they can practice good buisniess decisions.

 

I disagree, it is those lessons that teach you how to save and how to manage your money, stupid huts, but you learn from it and you get on with life.

He who has never made a mistake has never tried anything.

So no, the company should not be his mommy. They should not tie his shoes, and they do not heed to put him in or change his diaper.

 

Prime is not a bad company to work with if you can get those $2.30/mile runs on occasion. I had some really good weeks with Prime. However, if your fleet manager annoyed someone down in Sales, his fleet might not get the best loads. Also, if he insists on keeping you in the northeast, you will end up spending an awful lot of money on tolls. That's what I ran into.

That said, I never pulled a service failure with Prime. Every load was on time and I carefully routed myself for mileage, terrain and fuel pricing. I'd look online in Prime's fuel price list when planning a load so I knew where I was going to fuel. They have electronic logs, but even those didn't keep me from delivering on time. The added challenge there was convincing dispatch that I could make it and please don't repower this great paying load. Half the time they repowered it anyway.

As said in another thread, my business just didn't fit with theirs. I'm happiier, more relaxed and making more steady money with Swift. Note I said more steady. There is potential to clean up at Prime if you can get those good loads and are smart about routing and fuel. But there are also a huge number of crappy loads that have to be covered as well. (Tropicana comes immediately to mind) I didn't mind running Trop loads...if they were backed up with something decent.

But you are absolutely right. With e-logs, you don't get to go where-ever you want to with four hours left on your book. You have to finish out your break whenever you can. Often, that means somewhere where there aren't showers and a restaurant. That was unacceptible to me. I have to get a shower more often than that. Again, difference in business model.

Your former trainee is a putz. Either that or you failed in showing him how to actually run a truck by himself, not in a team situation. Suggestion to you for future trainees...have them sit down and route each trip, where they plan to fuel and where they would stop, then critique their work. But have them do it as if it's a solo load. Running team does not prepare a person to do this. If you're already doing this, then the shortcoming is his and he should have listened to you.

 

Steep learning curve ahead for the new guy!

I'm wondering: Does PRIME offer any classes in business management (i.e., running a truck to maximize profit)? Heck, do any carriers offer such classes for lessees?

 

I'm just wondering before I get there. As a co. driver, when the want you to take a load, do they qual comm it to you? How long does it take to plan the trip? How long do they give you to say wether or not you can legally do it? Or as a co. driver is it pretty much laid out for you?

 

not the fault of the dispatcher of course.like it was stated above trip planning is essential for this job and hours management.and of course not stopping for ##### breaks!

 

ok thanks....I'll stop hi-jacking now

 

At the rate he is going he will be in the hole to you too. Cant pay 60 an hour out of a -800 check. Sounds like a prime example of someone who really thought the job was just driving.