L/P assumptions are amusing

Nobody's accusing you of lying...but these numbers may not hold up throughout the L/P contract. Sure, you're doing great NOW...and you're out there talking it up, bragging and letting the world know how awesome the L/P is working for you. They're counting on that, because it makes it that much easier for them to sign up the next round of folks looking to take the easy route to truck ownership. Next year, your numbers will likely be worse, because all these awesome paying loads will be offered to the new contractors, so that THEY can take over recruiting new L/P operators. You'll be given the mediocre loads...pay enough to keep you rolling, but not rolling in it. By year 3, you're barely scraping by, watching your savings dwindle...but you'll keep hanging in there because you're in the "home stretch". They're hoping you'll be unwilling or unable to make that $2500 payment at the end (if you even make it that far) so they can have THEIR truck back to lease to the next guy. That's how it typically works for 95% of the L/P contracts in the industry, where the contractor never sees the title to the truck.

Then there is always the possibility that the company ownership isn't exactly on the up and up. Several years ago, there was a decent sized trucking company out of Tulsa (Arrow) that had a bunch of trucks on L/P. Problem was, the company had used those trucks as collateral on other loans, so even when the contractors completed their lease and paid the final payment, they couldn't get title to the truck. The company folded, and the banks which held those loans went looking for their collateral. These guys who were supposed to own the trucks had to hide them to avoid the repo man and hire lawyers and fight in court to try to keep the truck they had paid for, and while that whole process played out they couldn't put them on the road because they had no title...which meant they couldn't register the truck.

If your name isn't on the title, you don't own it. Sure, you might be one of the rare L/P's who will make it...but until you have your name on the title of the truck, I wouldn't get too excited. Just remember you're playing THEIR game, and the deck is stacked in THEIR favor. If you want to win, you'll have to fight for it, because it won't be an easy journey. Squirrel away as much as you can now in anticipation of leaner times to come so that you're prepared. If you aren't prepared, you're sure to fail.

 

lime Dave_in_az??

 

With a Corona ...

 

You're Dave in AZ. Wait a minute you've been telling us how you disliked Prime for awhile and now you tell us that you're leasing from JP. WTF what's the difference between you and Prime lease OP you haul the same freight at the same rates and your lease payments are about the same.

 

He said he was @Dave_in_AZ ?

 

That is truly weird if that's the case...