C.R. England and Sons, Inc. - West Valley, Ut.

There is only one way to make the "BIG" money leasing at CRE and that is to run team.

The only cost effective way to do this other than with a wife is
Be a trainier and pay $35 to for a co-driver. "? Or run a Cat second seat brand new driver ( 3 weeks on the raod) will cost you .10 a mile for every mile your truck runs. Can you sleep with someone right out of a two week trucking school at the wheel

Then get a long deicated route. Keep the left door shut the wheels turning and drive perfectly every day.

Otherwise be a company driver for .26 a mile till you find your 40 acres.

 

I worked for cr england for a year and I agree with every thing this driver posted, except company drivers now make .27 cents a mile I found it very difficult to break $500 a week as a company driver during my time there , CR england is very strict about log violations although I had my log book checked many times by dot and chp and I never once recieved a log violation from either of these departments I was fired after a year for company log violations every log is fed into a computer that looks for mistakes take my advice although tempting to chase the dollars you can not get away with anything don't even try.

 

Someone told me they charge you $50 to seat a truck. Whats this for?

.27 a mile? is that after training or something? that seems low. Heck even Knight pays .34 with only 4 months experience and you don't have to listen to that refer motor all night, if you don't want to either.

Any company starting at .27 in 2008 with the rising taxes, fuel, and health care costs is ripping you off people. Look around awhile and don't let those shinny trucks paid for by your low wages fool you. You can do better if you just put in a little effort.

 

Another rip-off from CRE ~~~~
$50 Seat Fee is an administrative fee: There is a $50 non-refundable
administrative fee for all students entering the truck driving school. ​

ONWARD THRU THE FOG -->>>>>​

 

The $500 bonus is a joke. They charge you $500 for class or some crap like that and then they use that to give to you as a bonus. YOU ARE GETTING YOUR OWN MONEY BACK!!! My hubby did the leasing for 2 months and we are in the hole financially so bad it is not even funny. They are now trying to say he owes them $1600 for repairs that needed to be done to the truck. It was 2400 but he had 800 in his maintance account. What kind of repairs did they need to do he had the truck for 2 months. We are awaiting the dreaded statement to see what they are claiming needed to be fixed and we will fight them to the end. THIS COMPANY IS HORRIBLE!!!!!!!!!!

 

Sometimes posting here is worth it. Sometimes. Sometimes posting here isn't worth it.

A lot of us have been trying to warn people off of England for years. I've been posting here about two years and the CRE basketcase story has been one of my favorite truths to tell.

What does a person do? All we can do is tell people to stay away from these sorts of companies over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and.....

These people have no morals. They will steal from you. Believe it.

I sound like a broken record, so I hope the incoming pool doesn't just take what he reads here with a pinch of pepper.

 

This is browneyes hubby



EVERYTHING that has been said about this company is 100% on the money. Prison like training, airport like security at the headquarters, NO MONEY in the lease program. NO MONEY as a company driver because majority of the miles go to the lease operators so they can make that "varible milage payment" The employees talk to you like they are high and mighty like they hate their job and why are you calling them for help when thats their job. NOT disgruntled just disappointed that my first experience with a trucking comany had to be a horrible one.

WORST COMPANY I HAVE EVER WORKED FOR.......

 

I also made the mistake of heading to SLC (Feb 2004)..Upon arrival and being put up in a 10 man dorm room (that should be condemned), started the painful process of orientation. I already had my CDL but had to go through the "re-training" because it had been over a year since leaving the open road.
There is nothing good about Salt Lake City, Ut in the middle of February. I consider myself to be a fairly level headed person (meaning, I know its going to be #### cold outside and brought warm clothes and boots for those long days on the pad). Alot of the students were not so level headed, sandals, t-shirts etc., and CRE did nothing to come to their aid. Amazingly, I got sick the second week there, I dont know what it was but I couldnt get out of bed to eat or drink let alone goto class. (come to find out from the instructors this "sickness" goes through the dorms every year about the same time). If it hadnt been for a guy in my class bringing me orange juice and crackers I believe I would have left in an ambulance or worse. Never got a chance to thank him, (he left to go back to work as a prison guard in Chicago) so If he happens to read this, Im saying "Thank you" now.

Orientation/schooling was a miserable experience. To witness grown men and women being humiliated everyday for something as little as a food voucher. People from all walks of life come through those halls, but if you believe your down and out, stop by that facility and eat in the cafeteria. (Good food by the way) You will witness true desperation. That desperation and the want of a better life for yourself, your wife and your children will lead you down a path with blinders on.
Hell, I had company drivers in the dorm pleading with me not to lease. Nope, I knew better! I completed the solo qualification program, 4 weeks solo, 12,000 miles and back to CRE. (a side note: during this program, I made .25 a mile, with the completion bonus I averaged over $1,000 a week) Signed the lease, hell I even got to pick a fairly new Classic. It was a Premier lease turn in (Premier leases are given to drivers that have completed their first lease), It was a 550 horse detroit, 13 speed canary yellow, with black leather interior, big chrome breathers, all the chicken lights and nice shiny stacks..WOO HOO, I was in heaven and to top it off they hadnt turned it down, went 75mph!! It was a nice ride, I will give England credit for their equipment. So off I went, heck with a piddly $1,000..I was going to double that..HA HA HA..Straight into the abyss, breakdowns, cancelled loads, slow freight call it what you want, death from above..finally got in the "shipping lanes" and all started going smoothly, but clawing your way out of that hole..Indescribeable...So, CRE suggested I enlist the help of the CAT program..HA HA HA..pick up a qualified solo driver fresh off a trainers truck jumping through the hoops so he can sign his lease...I use the word "qualified" loosely..Crossing the great state of New York, through the toll roads he decides he wants to change lanes at the toll booth..not enough room, blocks 3 lanes, cars stacking up behind/and to the side of us until we arent going anywhere, and neither is anyone else. Dropped him off (via CRE instructions) at bus station. Picked up another CAT driver and finally got some miles out of the truck..7500 mile avg for 4 weeks, truckin it up! I was so far behind, and burning so much fuel, and all those little accounts that nickel and dime you to death, and (yes I know thats alot of "ands") paying the second seat. I ended up with about $3,000 for 30,000 miles..WOO HOO, out of the hole! I pleaded with my second seat NOT TO LEASE!, but he too was in a bind, needed money, had blinders on and immediately leased hoping for the big score..he called me 2 months later worse off than when he started.
So, Im out of the hole! CRE puts out a call for drivers in the KC area willing to run a dedicated account. WOO HOO, same shippers, receivers and more consistent miles. Im there! I had a good Fleet Manager, she was once a driver and understood the hardships out on the road. If I had a problem, I was supposed to call her..1st week, 2,500 miles with a 2,200 mile break even. (meaning I had to get 2200 miles just to pay for truck and all the little accounts/expenses)..next week 2,300, next week 2,400, then 2,000..1,900..and so on...BACK IN THE HOLE! I couldnt pull it back out..I went 7 weeks without a paycheck..I called my Manager asking to be routed back to SLC..I qual-comm'd my manager asking to be routed back to SLC..I then contacted the lease department, explained the situation and asked about the ramifications of dead heading back to the yard. (I didnt want my fuel card turned off) They assured me the card would be left on but I wouldnt be paid for the dead head miles. Fair enough. 1,900 miles dragging an empty reefer, but they never turned off the card..I pulled through the fuel bays, dropped the trailer, cleaned out the truck, sent a msg that the keys were in the ash tray, called a cab, caught a greyhound and was in orientation at another company 2 days later..I started getting phone calls from CRE about 90 days later asking me to pay for repairs to the truck..(they kept almost $7,000 in all their accts that should have been returned to me)..CRE was asking for $2,800 (roughly) for tires, brakes, maintenance, detailing..etc...I knew the brakes and tires had been put on the truck prior to me signing the lease because I made them do it! Soooo, I simply asked for a detailed repair order noting all the measurements and what the specs were that required replacement (they couldnt give me that information), So, I asked for a signed repair order giving them authorization (from me), couldnt come up with that...So, I told them I would pay them if they returned the parts. Couldnt do that. (Im sure if they took tires off my truck, they went onto a company truck, etc)..I have recently checked my credit report, CRE shows lease completed per agreement, paid in full, no late payments..no money owed..
I cant say anything good about CRE lease program..nothing, nada, zilch..but the people working there, they do try to help you..The instructors are fair, the fleet managers do what they can, log department gives you every break in the world to keep you rolling..As individuals I didnt find one person at the CRE facility that wouldnt bend over backwards to help you...

C R England as a company, is like a snake in the grass, just stay away..

 

My husband went through the nasty hotel room, overcrowded classes with instructors that were stupid and not helpful, finished the course 2nd in his class. The pay sucked and they figure out ways not to repay you for tolls, scales etc. Also, they don't pay you for the miles you do run. You have to fight with them. He is now driving for Arrow Trucking and it is a little better. I would not advise anyone to go through CR England as they do not pay their truckers.

 

I swear the more I hear this story, the more I want to start my own trucking company. Every one of my drivers would be in a lease operator program. Sounds like the fleece route is a great way to make some healthy profit. This brings me to my message....You didn't do the final check with a company wig, so they ripped you. They ripped you because you let them rip you, more or less. This and the fact they COULD rip you legally. If C.Our. England Help-wanted can hose you somehow, they will do so. And this scam is a very common way they rip former fleece drivers. ALWAYS, ALWAYS jump through the hoops when turning in a truck:

1. Have someone from the shop or from safety go over the rig with you on your great "turn 'er in" day. Be sure you fill out all items on the checklist. Give the shop a copy, turn in a copy to the safety department, turn in a copy to the fleece department (if you're a fleece driver), and keep one for yourself. The list is on the back of your log pages you use for pretrip inspections. Use that or use a checklist your outfit provides. While on this topic, I'll will say in an aside that I think it'd be a good idea if a website like this created a bullet-proof, clean 'er out checklist and posted it as a sticky. Drivers could download it and make several copies of of it. It'd give drivers easy, quick access to the checklist, plus remind drivers how important properly turning in a rig is.

2. Take a load of pictures of the thing, inside and out, cab, frame, and engine compartment. Maybe you could even make a video of the lights and other things working, such as the wipers.

If you just park your truck, turn in the keys, and walk away without doing steps 1 and 2, you WILL get hosed at England, and probably many other outfits as well. Your walking without doing the checks and taking the pictures is exactly what they're counting on.