Any company drivers out there 1099?

If a driver agrees to be paid on a 1099 and fails to pay his taxes then it is the driver who is evading taxes, not the carrier. Notice I didn't call the carrier an employer. There are some who work on a 1099, spend their money and then attempt to throw their responsibility of paying their taxes back to the carrier. Those who do are guilty of tax evasion. If the carrier paid the driver as agreed then he is not evading taxes. If the driver fails to pay his taxes, then the axe should fall on his neck, not the carrier. When you make an agreement you should adhere to the terms or not sign the contract. It is much easier to shift blame to someone else.

 

That's true if the driver is a true independent contractor, as determined by IRS rules. It's not true if the driver is considered an employee by the IRS. The IRS provides guidance here to help business owners determine which category the individual falls into. If the business owner is unable to figure it out, the IRS wants them to fill out form SS-8, which the IRS will use to make the determination for the business owner.

 

Exactly my point.

 

http://www.ftmn.com/Employee.html

Here's a good comparison chart. Note that one determining factor is always working for one outfit as opposed to working for a number of outfits. Guys, the IRS ripped through the construction industry on this one a few years back. Now the gov is even broker. It's not one to mess with.

 

Other than, it is against the law for a situation like this to exist, although it goes on, there is one missing element in this discussion. If a driver is paid on a 1099 and he is involved in an accident, God help him! The "employer" can leave the driver without any protection.

I saw this happened several years ago, this bus driver was driving under a 1099 and was involved in a serious accident. He was hospitalized along with several passengers. The "employer" left him "high and dry", the driver had to pay for his own medical expenses and plus he was sued. I do not know the outcome of the suits.

 

That was unfortunate for the contractor. He should have had his own insurance which would have covered him. If he had hospitalization insurance or had an occupational accident policy then he would have had insurance to cover his medical bills. That is his own fault, not the company. If he was sued, then he may have done something which caused the accident. Again, that is not the fault of the company. Don't you think that anyone should take some responsibility for their own actions?

 

Taxes (for regular people) are not due until April 15th of the next year.

Yet the IRS, by default, will withhold taxes all year long, from each paycheck. They just about always take more than you "owe", which is why most people will get a refund check. However they do not pay interest on this "loan".

I always tell my payroll dept to NOT withhold any federal taxes on my weekly checks. As a result, I end up "owing" money. However I am aware of this and do not spend my entire checks because I know the criminal organization in Washington is going to extort a certain amount from me at the end of the year.

I pay the LEAST amount I possibly can, and I do not "loan" the government money during the year. Instead that money sits in a savings account generating interest not just until the end of the year, but until April 15th of the following year. I even post-date the check if it's mailed early, so it can't be cashed before it's due.

A 1099 is not required in order to file your taxes like this.

 

You are living in a "dream world". When a company employee is at working, either a driver or a toilet cleaner, they are covered and protected by the company and it should be. If companies were not responsible for the actions of their employees, hell they wouldn't care who they hire. And that is one reason for an "employer" trying to get someone to work under a 1099, their responsbility is zero.

 

I will assure you that when someone is driving for a carrier, it is the carrier who will be sued. Lawyers will go after whomever name is on the side of the truck, or in this case, the bus. Lawyers and individuals will check the fmcsa website to check how much liability insurance a carrier has before filing suit. It has gotten so bad that they no longer report how much insurance a carrier may have, they only report the minimums in most cases to avoid as much litigation. It is the responsibility of the contractor to make sure that he is adequately covered on insurance. Not all companies pay for hospitalization. The driver should be able to have his medical bills covered under the carrier's insurance policy, but should have his own to pay his medical bills in case of an accident. An occupational accident policy only costs about $140/month. If you think that the carrier will not share in the responsibility you don't understand how the world of litigation works. Those sharks will go after the carrier because they have the deep pockets. Suing this guy is only for the purpose of assigning blame. Unless the guy is independently wealthy, they know that they will get little or nothing from him. Look a little deeper and I would expect that the carrier is also named in the lawsuit. The litigators know that they stand a good chance of getting a fat paycheck without ever going to court.

 

Going back to your original question... a company driver by definition is an employee. You drive your employers truck, go where he tells you to, etc. You're an employee.

An employer must withhold payroll taxes, medicare, social security, etc - and document that on a W2. He is evading his responsibility to you and the IRS if he is trying to report your wages on a 1099.