Prime's lease deal. The math gets done.

Discussion in 'Report A BAD Trucking Company Here' started by BigKid2, Jan 16, 2009.

  1. doubledragon5

    doubledragon5 Road Train Member

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    Being a company driver, you don't have all the expenses like a lease or O/O. You work, drive miles you get paid.. You don't run miles you get crap pay..If you wan't to be a O/O, save up your money, get your own authority, and purchase your own equipment.. I never understood why people would want to lease on with a mega carrier, which only allows you to pull their own freight, but you have to make all the payments and repair bills, as if you actually own the equipment.. No brainer leasing any equipment from anyone Mega carrier is purely stupid.. Fine there are those who have success, but what is the percentage compared to those who don't succeed? No one can or has ever provided that info..
     
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  3. Bro_Dave

    Bro_Dave Medium Load Member

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    It's a 95% failure rate.
     
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  4. redoctober83

    redoctober83 Road Train Member

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    Depending on who you're with the success rate can be 10-90%. If you follow Prime's lease program as it's written out in the paperwork they give you, you would have a 90% chance of success.

    On average every week prime has 50 trucks turned in. Out of that number 50% are lease completion, 30% are picking up the new truck they custom ordered before their lease was completed, 10% are because they couldn't make it work for them, and 10% left trucking for medical, family or retirement reasons.

    Of the ones that couldn't make it, the biggest reason is poor money management, not understanding that this is a business, and thinking their dispatcher was a travel agent.

    Driving a truck from point a to point b is literally 10% of what it takes to be successful as a business owner.
     
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  5. drvrtech77

    drvrtech77 Road Train Member

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    I think these guys no matter where when they fail to look at it like a business...they're destined to fail if they DON'T change that mindest...
     
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  6. Canwil3565

    Canwil3565 Light Load Member

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    Just in case anybody is thinking about prime; this thread was the deciding factor in choosing to go with prime. The loaner truck isn't really a thing unless ur gonna be on breakdown because u need 3+ weeks of repair. I sat for 1 1/2 weeks for repair. Got put on loaner list 3 times, went to get loaner 3 times, only for them to keep telling me; "peterbuilt says it will be done tomorrow." So no loaner...2 weeks later, and drained of any savings from hotels+food+ bills at home and nothing coming in, truck breaks down again. 5 days I sat, can't stay in truck at dealership w/ no access to food or water (hadn't built up money to have significant # of supplies in my truck) so here we go with hotels, no uber so have to grab a taxi $$$. 6 days later truck is fixed roll out for another load, truck broke again in nowheresville, USA. Still havent caught up from before. 40+ ppl on loaner list so if I go to sprimo or any other terminal how long am I waiting for loaner?! Who knows? Can I go company? Sure...if u go w/ a trainer for 20,000+ miles b/c u have idled too much. Really?! Been driving for years....apu was broken and couldnt afford anymore repair......."Help every driver to be successful." "Didnt run smart." Oh, thank u for pointing that out..........
     
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  7. jbatmick

    jbatmick Road Train Member

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    hastings, Fl
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    Just remember, these companies are in business to make THEM money, and if you can make a living also, good for you, but they come first. They need you, sure, but there are always hands looking to lease, and they simply will B.S. someone else into signing.
     
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  8. Canwil3565

    Canwil3565 Light Load Member

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    They will. I don't think the whole company is bad. Have no idea what it would be like running company for them. I have made decent money running for them as lease but when u sit on breakdown for a while and start adding them numbers up while u eat ur last bag of chips from the vending machine (and have no more change) it gets real. It gets real. Just please, anyone looking at this company; take that lease contract that reads like a deposition from an attorney to AN ATTORNEY. Its not meant to be understood.
     
    Lonesome Thanks this.
  9. smokey12

    smokey12 Road Train Member

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    Are you still with Prime? Wow your story sounds like.a nightmare, best of luck!
     
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  10. Ruckie

    Ruckie Road Train Member

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    as a person that has done a little bit of everything even trash hauling, the only way a lease works is that if you get % not by the mile and you can actually pick your freight or atleast have a saying on where you going. try going into good paying lines or atleast with consistent freight not getting also remember a truck is a work tool and when you are paying 600 dollars a week for a truck you better make sure that is paying itself.
     
    pusherman and Canwil3565 Thank this.
  11. Canwil3565

    Canwil3565 Light Load Member

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    It's been tough. I really didn't want to hear all the mess ppl talked about prime but, I have found its TRUE! I repeated almost word for word what that post said earlier about "leasing a CB shop" and the guy was like a used car salesman! He said "no, I will in fact get the title at the end of ur lease!" I was astonished! Excited! Carried myself as though I would own a truck soon. Focused on credit and building a good, solid relationship with a bank. Should have been focusing on PREPARING for breakdown! Just should have carried myself differently.
    I'm still with prime. Not sure I'm gonna leave, just really not feeling what's going on here......
     
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