Fighting cheap freight

There is definately something to be said for shaming some brokers... I call on 45k loads paying .95 per mile... I ask them if they would take a commission that ONLY covered their office expenses... you know, about $2.00 to cover fax toner and paperclips... they laugh... then I ask them why I should take a load and do ALL the work for the same peanuts.... usually makes them think a bit.... I have and will continue to deadhead and leave cheap freight sitting on a dock... just to spite them.. I delivered in Miami on a Friday recently and the only offers I was getting were 45k loads paying a $1 or less per mile... I told the last one I was heading home (Jax), empty and started the truck... his rate suddenly jumped to $2.25 per mile.... seems it hurt his feelings to see a truck pull north empty... It CAN be done, folks... just be willing to suck it up if they call your bluff... I do.

 

Either you are part of the problem or part of the solution. It's that simple.

 

Ive dead headed home 3 or 4 times to jax from Miami when coming home. Nothing in the past has been worth my time.

 

Yes because the latter is giving away your services and making you part of the PROBLEM instead of part of the SOLUTION.

 

I once deadheaded much further than 500 miles due to cheap rates and having to be home by a certain date to take care of some business. Rather than take a load for $0.90/mile, I deadheaded 2,289 miles. Had I had a few more days to wait, I could probably have found something before getting home. I have deadheaded long distances since due to cheap rates or lack of available freight, but not that far. It doesn't do any good to provide lip service when talking about cheap rates. You either take them and pay your fuel or deadhead. I prefer to deadhead. To the best of my knowledge, I have never taken a load just to pay for fuel to get to a better area. I know a few who feel differently, but that is what I have done for several decades. I don't see a reason to change now. Unless you are willing to walk away and deadhead, rates will never go up.

 

Gman, you and I have had many long talks and I have a great amount of respect for you but I honestly don't see how you can continually deadhead like that and just piss that money away on driving home empty? Does it not start to add up after a while? How do you cope?

 

We have Deadheaded 500+ miles to get a better paying load could have taken a cheap heavy $1.59 mile and no the load wasn't a CHR load, If three drivers said no to that rate you can bet your bottom dollar that load would have went up to $1.69 and then if another three drivers say no it goes up again.


Broker talks to shipper I can't get this heavy load covered for that price you may have to rethink the rate Laughing because you have O/Os who will read this and think that $1.69 is an OK back haul, but we don't do back hauls, it costs me the same to get in as it does to get out!

 

Not the point, the point was, the OP called the broker on this ONE LOAD, just to give him ####, ignoring the fact that the same broker MIGHT have another load that pays much better.

He then suggested you deadhead 500 miles to pick up a load that is $2.00 a mile, instead of, calling other brokers for one?

I never once suggested anyone take a load for $1.00 per mile, $1.10 per mile, etc, but there are much better options than calling a broker out on it and making an ### out of yourself, and better options than pissing away money to prove a point.

Deadheading 500 miles to pickup a $2.00 load is cutting your nose off to spite your face, it makes that "great" $2.00 load useless if you are actually trying to make money. Does it prove a point, sure, is it going to change brokers prices, not a chance.

 

I sincerely wished more people weren't so short sighted as so many here seem to be.

 

2,289 miles is the farthest that I have had to deadhead. I would not have driven that far had I not had to be home to take care of some business. I had to be home by a certain date that could not be rescheduled, so I put it in the wind. I didn't have the time to wait for a better rate. I don't like to deadhead any more than anyone, but I refuse to put anything on my trucks that I cannot make a profit. I can't see everyone making money on a load but the truck. After all, without the truck, nobody makes money. I know when I go to Long Island that I will usually need to deadhead about 350 miles to get something that is worth hauling. I have gotten lucky a few times, but I don't go into that area unless I get a rate that will allow me to deadhead to a better area without killing my rate. When I cross the Hudson, I get a very good rate or I don't go. I would prefer to deadhead the 350 miles rather than haul trash off the island that has to be tarped to Ohio for $1/mile. As you know, when a load fails to move, the rate goes up. I can deadhead a lot cheaper than with a heavy load that won't allow me a profit. I can't even break even at $1/mile. All I would do is pay my fuel. I can deadhead 350 miles for about 50 or 60 gallons of fuel. I will be in an area where I can find a good paying load. If I take the cheap load, I will waste at least a day or perhaps two hauling a load where I won't even break even. I know that Landstar encourages their BCO's to put something cheap on the truck to avoid moving for free so that you can get to a better area. I happen to disagree with that philosopy. I have a good friend who has come around to my way of thinking. At one time, he would put something cheap on his truck to avoid having to pay for fuel to move the truck to a better area. Before he came around to my way of thinking, I usually had better weeks than he did and I did more deadheading. I just got better rates going out.