Hey guys, this is my first post here so ill give you a little background and then my problem so please bare with me for a bit. Here goes, I am a 4th generation truck driver, I've been around it from every way for my entire life. Last year I decided to go along with the family buisness so I got my CDL permit. I went OTR training with my brother who has been driving for 12 years. As soon as I could, I scheduled my CDL test, I had to wait almost 8 months for a spot to open up so I pretty much drove team with my brother until then. I passed my test with flying colors and was on my way to driving in the one open truck my dad and brothers small company had for me. Two days after I got my CDLs, I was informed that their insurance wouldn't cover me because I was new and they were gonna try to switch insurance companies and see if that would make a difference. Long story short, that didn't work and I was screwed. Fast forward a little and I finally get a job driving a roll off truck for a scrapyard. I was OTR with that job but it wasn't a big truck, it was a standard roll off straight truck so that OTR experience is verifiable but doesn't count for anything. I was let go from that job because I called them from Augusta Georgia and told them that I was at a shop, and wasn't moving that truck another foot until it was fixed (broken studs on my right steer tire) started with 1 and they said wait a few days, 3 were gone by the time I said this was enough. They just kept coming off, anyway that's beside the point, the following Monday, I go in and am getting ready to head to Tennessee and they let me go for how I handled it. The week after that I got a job driving a dump truck, that job went great and I was there until the job was complete. They want me back but the economy being what it is, construction isn't really sky rocketing. Now to my main problem, I have almost 8 months of driving experience on my permit, 6 months experience on my CDLs but never went to school, I got OTR on the job training but recently I have found out that literally counts for nothing. As far as insurance companies are concerned, I have NO experience with a big truck and only 6 months otherwise. I can't get a school to do anything because I already have my credentials and a refresher course is $1500.00 that I don't have, companies that send you to school won't do anything because they all say the same thing, "you already have your CDLs, why would we send you to school to get them?" I just need to get the experience and noone can give me a shot to prove myself because truck driving is a huge insurance game now. Bottom line is how do I get experience on my driving record when noone will hire me and how do I get someone hire me without experience? I'm out of ideas and need some help or advice or anything you guys have to offer.
im out of ideas.. really weird problem
Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by nc hellbilly, Oct 3, 2011.
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Sometimes you have to bite the bullet and start with the bottom feeders.
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Call your brother up and get back with him teaming. That might be enough to prove the experience.
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Yeah, Harvey, I did. He was with his brother for 6 months. It was training time, and he might be able to get back with him again.
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what is your driving record like
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Some of the biggies are self-insured. Might be worth a phone call, anyway. I know what you mean about the insurance game. I'm runnning into the same brick wall, albeit for different reasons. It's frustrating, but that's the game. You'll have to get your experience any way you can, and if that means Swift, cowboy up and get on with it.
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My company has Sentry Insurance and they accepted my OTR experience that occured 11 years ago, I guess due to my clean record. All the other companies said no dice, I had to start from scratch and call back in a year.
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