Do Not LEASE from Knight!

They cannot legally change the rate paid per mile unless they revise the latest contract the lease/owner op signed. Even then the lease/owner op would have to sign it. Only one parties signature on a document does not make a legally binding contract. The above would depend on how the original/current lease/owner op contract is worded.

Best to get OOIDA involved.

Of course they can mess with company drivers pay all they want, unless the company driver has a written contract spelling out terms of pay etc. Nope folks, what recruiter told you, nor what you have been getting paid for the last 6 months or 40 years with a company as a company driver has no bearing on this. It must be a written and signed by both parties (you and the employer) to stand a chance in court. Far as I know, there are few, if any companies out there which actually sign a contract with their company drivers. Union drivers excepted due to the collective bargaining agreement.

In retrospect, it would behoove each lease/owner op to review their contract with their carrier. Make certain it spells out who pays for what, how much this and that is going to cost you (not the company), how much you get paid, both per mile loaded and unloaded, detention, bonuses, fuel surcharge, insurance, etc. Also, review the section on deductions, i.e., qualcom, insurance, fuel, IFTA filing, whatever. Could possibly be time to look at finding a different fuel network, insurance coverage and much more to use instead of the company provided one maybe.

Best advice, join OOIDA, and have them review your contract.

 

That lease is a binding agreement and OOIDA will force them to pay agreed amount or bring suit against them. They will break the lease for the drivers and get all escrow amounts back. If they leased it from knoght they will terminate it without damaging thier credit reports.

 

Understand that Knight's lease has two different rates in it, one is the base rate, which is the rate stated in the lease.

The other rate is what they actually pay the lease operator per mile, it is adjusted up or down based on the rates Knight is getting from their customers but will never go lower then the base rate set in the contract. IOW, what Knight does is pass along at least a portion of any rate increases it receives. How many other carriers do u know that do that for per mile leases?

 

Better advice - Never lease from ANYBODY !!!

 

So would you say Kevin Rutherford doesn't know what he's doing leasing with FedEx? Hmmm?

Blanket statements like that rarely hold up to examination.

 

I meant lease purchase

 

While I agree, in general, that lease purchase is the least desirable option, it some rare instances, it's a good fit for some people.

A lot of companies do little to set up their lease drivers for success, they dangle a shiny new truck out in front of them and tell them to sign on the bottom line with little regard to weather the driver will be able to make enough to meet his external financial obligations. In fact, most of the companies have the intention to use flease drivers to pay for new trucks and deliver freight while basically working for less then a company driver after expenses. Then when the driver gets close to the end of the lease they cut his miles and starve him out of his truck.

However, for a driver that for what ever reason can't find outside financing but isn't burdened with debt. A company that leases him good used equipment with a warranty that gets good mpg in order to keep his costs low and has the freight to get him miles is a viable option for those that dream of being O/O's.

 

You should keep dreaming. "Good used equipment?" "Warranty?" "Good MPG?" Not very often, at least I've not seen it in a L/P.
In a lease purchase, from a carrier, the carrier holds too many of the cards. They dispatch you, find your freight, set your appointments, etc. If there are 2 trucks sitting in the same town, a company driver, and a lease/purchase driver, and 1 load comes up, who do you think will get it?
Many of the trucks they push off on O/O wannabees are old company trucks, that weren't good enough for their drivers. Too old, too many miles, etc. But they're suddenly good enough to pawn off on a L/P?

If you can't find "outside financing, for whatever reason", then maybe you should rethink the O/O dream.....

 

You can lease and have any problem and walk away! Or you can buy and have a problem and still be stuck with a monthly payment. Just the other side of the equation. DRIVE SAFE