Leasing from Landstar

Landstar doesn’t lease any equipment….

 

Pretty badly. Schneider is a better choice.

@Dave_in_AZ can answer questions.

 

You don't lease a truck from Landstar. You lease your truck to Landstar.
When people say leasing is not the best thing to do, they are talking about leasing a truck from a company.

 

If you're a grown up, they treat you like a grown up. If you're out of compliance on something, they'll let you know.
Consider it benign neglect. After orientation, you wander the wilderness and either figure it out or fail. Many fail.

 

I have been with Landstar two years now. I can tell you this, I hated it the first 3 months I was with Landstar. I think it was just a matter of learning the system though, a process that everyone seems to go through when they come here. Sure, you think you will make tons of money and in some cases you might. But not every week will be the same unless you have agents you work with consistently every week running the same freight and lanes.

As far as freedom, in my experience as an owner operator, Landstar remains unmatched. I don't have anybody telling me when I can or cannot go home, I stay home as long as I want, I haul what I want, when I want, etc. You are required to have hazmat to come on to Landstar, but you do not have to haul hazmat. Landstar will claim you have to give the trailer up if you will be home longer than ten days, but I have been down for two weeks with the trailer at home while my truck was in the shop and Landstar never said a word.

One really bad thing about Landstar is the shape of the trailers. And it truly isn't just Landstar's fault, either. Landstar can't repair what nobody tells them about and there are a LOT of trailers that knuckleheads will drop at drop/hook shippers and receivers with issues they won't mention to anybody. Could be as simple as a light being out, could be as bad as brakes hanging off the drums, blown tires, etc. Landstar will repair the issues, if you let them know about it but many people do not do that and leave it on the driver who has to use the trailer next to do it. That goes for the 120-day DOT inspections also. Landstar does require 120-day DOT on trailers and trucks. I have received a couple of little shirt pins (that I will never wear) for having all clean inspections and such, mostly from making sure I get the 120-day inspections done on the trailers I do pull and getting safety issues repaired. One agent I work with in particular every time I pick up a trailer from his shipper, 90% of the time, it needs the inspection and/or has some sort of issue. I have seen other Landstar drivers go in, drop and hook inside of 5 minutes leaving out knowing they didn't check anything at all.

Overall, I think it is just about what it would be anywhere else, it is good and bad at times. But when it comes to the freedom and everything else, I can't imagine going anywhere else. Or at least not in the near future anyway.

 

I was actually just pulling your leg - the other responses were accurate. I’ve been there 11 years now. It has its quirks, but if you’re in a solid financial position, and a good operator - it’s a good place to make a good living without going ‘full owner operator/own authority “.