Three Incidents in 90 days

I've had three as well, first two in my second month driving and the next at my 5 month mark. My company put me on probation for the rest of my first year (almost at 8 months now ).

I've had a LOT of close calls otherwise. All related to backing in tight spots. I look like an idiot now but I GOAL a million times on any back I'm even somewhat not sure about . If I can't fit it in I just drop it some where else or wait for some person to move to give me more space to maneuver (if it's a dock).

If I'd violated my first probation period i would be in the same spot OP is in

I applied several times to different mega carriers and still got offers from many of them , there's got to be several companies willing to take you .

 

Fired by Swift? That’s not good. Lol. Good God, that’s the problem today. Policies, rules and endless guidelines. I’ve done the same or similar at least once. It’s part of the learning process. Consider it a favor they fired you. You’ll definitely find another job. Relax, slow down, be careful. Live and Learn.

 

... probably trailer ...very common ...have buddy doing road service , loves this type of guys !

 

...time to apply to volvo crowd in chicagoland on 1099 ...i know guys making 3k weekly as drivers ( not legally of course ) ... Gonna forget about deposit and last check though in best case scenario

 

Snapping the door off is probably what cost you your job. The other two mistakes are not too bad.

 

Didnt think about it til now but I got my CDL and cut my teeth on those 1099 gigs. Paid a lot of dues with them over the last few years and finally landed myself a real job with benefits and all that good stuff.

For me personally it worked out better to start with small, somewhat fly-by-nighters and have some hiccups here and there without it being documented or THAT big of a deal, rather than go with a micro-managing mega carrier and get nit picked about every little mistake, PLUS getting exposed by some bull like DAC or whatever else stupid websites and services that are out there. I am grateful for the opportunities ive been given

 

Wait.
Ok.
1.)You curbed a tire blowing it and bending the rim.
No Excuse here, signals inattentive driving to me.
In 20 years I’ve not bent a rim on anything, especially a curb, if you see you’re going to hit it, position trailer where you drive on it, not against it.

In a year this should’ve been something learned.

2.)High hook and don’t stop until the back of the truck hit front of trailer to bend the fairing?


3.)Door latch broken.
But door was open to back in a dock, so either the little rope hook you’re meaning or one of the ones with the latch into trailer.

Did you report the door being broken before taking off with it?
What did you tie the door open with, twine?

I’m not picking here, just it’s not adding up to me.
Sometime is a miss.

1.Inattentive Driving.
2.Inattentive Driving, failure to use mirrors, and GOAL.
3. Failure to complete Pretrip and refusal to move until door was repaired.
No one can force you to drive something you can’t secure.

I hate to say, but I agree with the decision by Swift on this one.

You’re getting in to big of hurry, slow down.

 

Yeah those learning things are costly but not for the driver and maybe it should be to them what it means to have an incident. This morning I will pass a trailer in my yard with the door sitting inside. It has at least $7k worth the damage because of the box frame being bent just enough that the trailer repair place will have to fix the frame, ensure the insulation isn’t damaged and put in a new door.

it is costing me money going after the company who’s driver did the damage, this means that the trailer is off the road, I am paying it off monthly and the driver who took off the door said “oh well, no big deal!” which pissed me off enough to go after his company aggressively.

So yes drivers get fired or should if you make too many “mistakes”, especially for those who keep making them and not paying for the damage, either learn how to stop being in a hurry and learn how to back up or learn that driving a truck is not for everyone,

 

One of the side effects of using drop yards and this drop&hook system is trailers are being damaged. I know for fact tires and wheels are being stolen off them. My old carrier had an entire reefer unit removed off a new trailer just picked up several months before from a trailer maker. The yard drivers are also tearing them up. At least 4 out of 10 trailers I picked up had some kind of an issue. Some folks don't know this, but one of the reasons a large carrier based out of Wisconsin with orange trucks lost a ton of accounts, they grew so large they lost track of their trailers. Heck, the day I retired I could still from time to time see their trailers sitting in places being used for storage. I would be willing to guess that carrier lost at least 10,000 trailers and I bet to this very day 10% of those lost are still lost!