Landstar

This is funny. We deadheaded from New York going to Mass. Got called while passing through Connecticut by the agent telling us the load got cancelled. They paid us $150 for truck ordered not used! Found another load that same day 4 miles from the T/A, going back to Texas $2.45/ mile.

If you are not finding good loads then you are not using the board to your advantage. Check the "lane match" tool! we look for agents in areas we are in that don't seem to put freight on the board, and call them. Some don't post trips because of the volume of calls they have to take to get a driver.

Landstar is about playing the averages. you might take a load that pays a little low, but your next trip pays great so they equal out.

I find it funny that drivers complain about trips like this. Our worst trip paid us 1.70/mile. I think I will take that any day. If you compare it with the .26 cents Swift will pay you for the same miles at double the loaded weight.

 

Do you even know what double brokered means? Thought not. LS doesn't double broker freight. Wow, your brother (not you) gave Landstar 2 months!!! Did your brother use lane match to introduce himself to agents? Did he cold call agents? OR, did he sit and look at the load board and wonder why no one was calling him like his old dispatcher did. LS is what you make it. If you're lazy, don't have good business sense, or not ready to do everything yourself, it is NOT for you!

 

Before I stick my size 12 in my own mouth here lets clarify "double broker" loads...

 

A double broker load is simply where a shipper gives a load to (for example) CH Robinson. If CH were to send that load to Landstar, and it's put on a BCO's truck, that is not double brokering. One broker, one carrier.
Now, if LS were to broker that out to another carrier, that would be double brokering. 2 brokers( CHR and LS), one carrier, Poor Misguidedfool Xpress, LLC Corp.

Gray areas you run into are where Ryder Integrated Logistics or the like has complete control over a companies logistics and manages their transportation. In effect, Ryder becomes the shipper instead of a broker with THIS customer. So RYDER is the shipper, CHR is the broker and LS is the carrier. This is considered legal, but it shows how many hands get in that freight rate before PMX, LLC Corp might get it.

 

Wow, I really hate seeing a good company slandered by those that can't cut it in life. The original post here was in a time where freight rates were very low. I was not with Landstar, I was running under my authority, yet I was desperately seeking a good carrier that had contracted rates. You see, everywhere at that time sucked, rate wise. Finally, enough guys that didn't have enough put back to keep running went under, their trucks shipped overseas and the supply/demand evened out. Now on to Landstar.

If you have had your own authority, LS will be a walk in the park and so much easier. You still have to pay all the stupid taxes (ad valorem, AR, KS, NY, etc) but they file them for ya (this is where folks think they are being nickle and dimed). The advantage is you see the price of the load on the board. No calling and going through the BS only to find out the load pays 1.20 like you did on Internet Truckstop, Get Loaded or DAT. You already know where to go for what rate, and that sometimes a 1200 mile deadhead equals more profit. You also already know agents are just like your old brokers who would call you when they got a load that fits your criteria.

If you are coming from a dipatcher/cents per mile contract, Landstar will not come nearly as easy to you. THERE ARE NO DISPATCHERS, PERIOD. You are responsible for everything you do and earn. If you want to take January off, don't book a load. No one will even call you. The more agents you run for and build a relationship with, the more likely you'll stumble on a few that have great freight and want you to run for them. These are the agents you want. Approx 70% of the freight I haul NEVER hits the board. I spoke to a LS driver a few days ago that runs a dedicated account that none of the freight is put on the board. This means you have to network and sell yourself, pick up tips on agents from other drivers, and act like a PROFESSIONAL. This is a sales job, make no mistake. You will need to learn how to be accountable to yourself if YOU didn't find a load today. At the same time, you have to learn how to be profitable, which includes repositioning your rig for free, and only taking high dollar loads into bad areas, as you know freight will be cheap coming out.
Fact: It will yield more net income to take a $2,000 load with 500 deadhead and 500 loaded than a $2,000 load with 25 dh and 975 loaded. REMEMBER THIS!

There are three types of truck owners at Landstar.
New truck guy: We have a lot of drivers that run late model equipment. They are set up with agents on both sides of their running area and some inbetween. They work hard and rarely look at the load boards.

Old truck guy: He has a well maintained older truck, enjoys life and has other interests outside of trucking, usually is at home on weekends and rarely looks at the load boards.

FNG: All types of trucks, usually crying that they have no money because they came from a bad situation, hitting the boards all day, very few restrictions on their load alerts, etc. Those that understand what it takes to succeed turn into the two types above, others leave and tell others that LS sucks. What they are really trying to say is that they didn't try hard enough, weren't professional and prefer to be unaccountable for their actions.

 

Double brokering is where a broker or agent gets a load from another broker and then sells it to the truck or carrier. Some call it "co-brokering." Schneider has been doing this for years with some of their accounts. They will get an account and if they can't cover it they will send the load or loads out to other brokers to help move the load. In turn, these brokers will try to find carriers to whom to book the load. There is some co-brokering going on with Landstar. They are not alone. I know another agent based carrier who also double brokers loads. I have no doubt there are many who are doing it. If a load is very cheap it is likely that it has been co-brokered or double brokered. When I was leased to Landstar I hauled loads for JB Hunt and others. I didn't know it until I picked up the load. Some agents or brokers are just lazy. It is easier to have someone else do the selling for you and then all you have to do is find a truck. Schneider calls it co-brokering. No matter what you call it, it is double brokering. Both will make their commission. If both take 20% then the rate has been discounted 40% by the time it gets to the carrier or owner operator. If it goes to a carrier who has trucks leased to them then the rate could be discounted even further. There is a lot of good paying freight. Some of the so called cheap freight areas are not necessarily cheap as far as what the shipper pays. Some brokers will take such a big piece of the line haul that it winds up being cheap. They may also double broker it.

Several months ago I got a load out of New Jersey for a little over $2.40/mile. One broker whom I do a fair amount of business told me that the best he could do out of that area was about $1.41/mile. Now, is the broker who had the good rate a better salesman or was the other broker taking too much of the line haul or was he double brokering the load? You could draw your own conclusions.

I would have thought that if a load was co-brokered that it would be like it is in the real estate business. The two companies or agents would split their usual commission. That is not the way that it works in the freight business from what I have seen. Each broker gets their regular commission. I suppose it is possible that they could discount their rate, but I have not seen that happen.

 

I think that we were answering the question about double brokering at the same time.

It seems that more and more shippers are going to 3ppl's. The military has been trying to turn over much of their logistics to Menlo. I am not sure how well that is working for them.

 

Just what I thought it was, now that we are all on the same page here....

As some of you already know after I got out of my own truck back years ago I hired on with a LS agent who basically had his own company....We used LS authority and pulled some of their vans the freight was a mix of LS stuff plus our own..

In the 8 or so years I was on with him there were quite a few times where our dispatchers were busy and told me "call this agent and get your info its already booked"...After calling the agent I would be given another number to call which was an outside broker for my info or an outside broker would call the truck and check up on load status..It didn't happen a lot but it did happen..

Personally I could care less because the big boss man paid me by the mile so I didn't get involved with rates I did make him aware when something funny was going on though..

There are still or was when I quit in February some cut throat dirty dogs in that LS system, LS will tell you double broker loads don't happen and you get offered all available loads which is total BS the good 'ole boy network still happens...

 

Technically, if a Landstar agent gets a load from a broker and puts it on a Landstar truck it isn't double brokering. If the Landstar agent put the load on an outside carrier, then it would be considered as being double brokered. Landstar still gets their cut as does the originating broker. The rate would more than likely resemble that of a double brokered load. I also have no doubt that Landstar gets some double brokered loads. It is a practice that has been going on for many years. Even with all the games, rates can still be decent. I got pretty good rate when I was leased to Landstar. I would not run for the same rates today. Fuel was much less than $1/gallon. We also didn't have a fsc back then. I know some owner operators who are doing well leased to Landstar. It depends on how you operate your business. You won't find anyone holding your hand with them. Unless you are highly motivated you will probably not do well with Landstar. They have a pretty good support system in place, but it will be up to you to make a success out of your business. Whether you lease to Landstar, another carrier or run your authority, you can find cheap and good paying loads. It will be up to you whether you want to fail, skim along or be successful.

One reason that I initially decided to lease to Landstar many years ago was a guy that I met who had 16 trucks (I believe) leased to them. Over breakfast at a Flying J, he convinced me that Landstar would be a good fit for me. There are some fleet owners who lease to Landstar rather than running their own authority. I think some of them are also agents for Landstar.

 

I stand corrected then.