Break even cpm.

Based on the last two years of my operation, the range of cost per mile in my case has been roughly .75 a mile, give or take a few cents. That is all expenses, medical insurance, taxes, truck payment, maintenance, etc. That is the cost on paid miles and does include all costs including unpaid miles. If I was paid on hub miles for everything, then my cpm would go down. For July, my cpm came in at .67 and June came in at .71

 

The most important factor that is often left out of cost per mile, is your own pay! You wouldn't drive a company truck for free, so you need to add in a decent wage on top of your costs of ownership and operation.

 

I am a little confused on this one and maybe I am wrong but I am looking at it this way. You need to figure in all miles by the hub on what it took to run the trip deadhead also, no matter how you are paid. Your truck just doesn't burn fuel on computer miles only. I was leased to an outfit at one time that paid by the mile and I had a lot more miles ran then I got paid on about 95% of the trips and that was the cheapest I have ever worked, never again. I know what my cost per mile is and everyone does it different. Some look at it on they need to make so much a day, a week, a month, a quarter and maybe a year. I look at it per mile and then have a goal on what I need to bring home after expenses each week.

Thing I figure in for cost per mile. Some may add other things and some may add less. I base this on my mileage from the previous year which runs around 100,000 miles. I keep records every week on what I do as far as loads and expenses and then I do quarterly report on what I have done for that quarter just to let me know how I am doing and then a year end report on everything. I take my beginning odometer and my ending odometer and what the truck grossed for the year and that is what the truck grossed per mile. Take the total of all expenses and wages divided by the number of actual miles ran and that gives my cost per mile for the year.

I am leased to a company and pull their trailer and they take care of the cargo and liability insurance.

List.

1. Truck Payment
2. Truck Insurance- Physical damage, Non-Trucking Liability (bobtail).
3. Occupational, Health, Dental and life Insurance
4. Maintenance and Repairs
5. Fuel
6. Cell Phone
7. Wages and retirement
8. Taxes which is mostly a savings account because I haven't had to pay anything in a long time.
9. Tag and any permits.
10. Fuel and road use taxes
11. Misc. for other things you need like supplies, cleaning stuff, office supplies, etc....

You also need put back money for replacement cost like power train components, tires even the whole truck. I have known guys that had bad credit, no money in the bank and then something happens like a motor going down and they just were put out of business.

My cost per mile is roughly $1.38 that also includes my wages that I pay myself and money I put back for taxes, maintenance, repairs etc.. I have a personnel checking account and a personnel saving account for the wife and I and then the business checking and a business savings for taxes and another savings account for maintenance, repairs and replacement.

I might have missed something and hopefully some others might add to the list but that is a start. Hope this helps cynicalsailor.

 

Cost of operations worksheet dwl. is available from Sammons trucking website.

go to downloads/spreadsheets.

will need microsoft office to open download.


this is the dwl. i used to figure up my bep.

 

There is also one you can get from OOIDA's website that is pretty good. It's in Microsoft Excel format.

 

I figure my cost as per day expense. However I have a maintenence and repair fund already in place. I know my fixed cost for truck payment, insurance and etc. So thats really easy to break down and also fuel is pretty easy based on a permile. So instead of looking at everything as a permile base and thinking if Im not getting 2 bucks a mile and wont do it, I look at it as how much money I need to make a day. Not saying to run for cheap rates but if you pay all your expenses its easy to figure what you have left for yourself.

 

Per day? what do you do on the days you are at home, are you going broke those days? So when you go back on the road you must be in the hole.

 

No its pretty simple with a little math. I figure it at 5 days a week that being my work week. Take my truck payment and insurance costs and so on. I add those together and divide by 20 days. That gives me a amount I need to make each day to cover those costs. Fuel is based on how many miles as I would think you know so that does change. After that I know how much I want to bring home each month so that breaks into a daily cost as well. So then I can pick my loads based on that info.
If you can add a subtract its pretty easy. May not work for everyone but works good for me. I suppose if you were a line hauler or dedicated you could figure it permile if you new you could run x amount of miles each month. I am indepent so my monthly mileage does change.
You may want to think this thru a little bit before thinking its wrong.

 

I have been formulating a business plan and it gets me at $1.40 a mile needed on all miles. Now that puts money into various escrows for major repairs as well as tax set asides. I included everything that I could think of, including a bag of kibble for my hound.