Expedite Solutions - scam, deceit, trickery, slavery

I have a suggestion that works. This is a solution to any truck driver that is told he MUST drive a vehicle that has issues that place it in violation of DOT regulations.
First, I would like to tell all drivers, and someone can correct me if the think I am wrong.
A driver is responsible for the safety of the vehicle he or she is driving. If you perform a pretrip on a vehicle and find major issues, call the company, and are told to "run with it", and you do, and have an accident, IT WILL BE YOUR FAULT. The rules ---WILL---matter most if someone is seriouly injured or killed. A driver, operating a commercial vehicle in violation of DOT safety regulations, can be charged if an accident results in death. Even if not charged civil law can place the driver at fault and liable.
Most drivers that work as independants for trucking companies are not incorporated. Most do not use a commercial account. MOST are personally vulnerable to lawsuits.
I would NOT go into business with out some sort of corporate protection such as LLC or subchaper S.
The suggestion: If you are told to run with an unsafe vehicle----refuse. Tell them it MUST be fixed. If you are threatened with being fired you have a choise. Still refuse and see if they will fire you ---OR--- bring the vehicle to the nearest DOT scale. Tell them what is going on. I did this and the company got into trouble, heavy fines, and could not do anything to me. The truck was placed out of order(a long list) and was repaired.
Of course I worked for them long enough to get the truck back and quit. You can say "I will call DOT" but should only do so if you are prepared to do it. You should also call the safety department before proceeding. I know--theses things should not have to happen. It is somewhat worse when "leasing" a truck owned by someone that is leased to another company as most expediters are.

 

My fave phrase when arguing with breakdown was 'Okay let me call DOT and see if they think its a safety issue." And I don't think I've ever had the arguement continue past that.

I would NEVER drive a unfit truck. The fines are the drivers, not the companies. Thats some serious $

 

I like that one! Very good!

 

Definately a big rip off company. A bunch of crooks. This company is also no longer located in Indianopolis, In. they have recently moved to Anderson, In. Makes you wonder why a lot of their policies have changed lately. Could it be from all of the bad info that is finally getting out about this scamming school. Everything Pardel wrote is the truth, We have had the same bad experiences from this company. They rob their drivers blind and leave you with nothing.

 

Has anyone beat the PFS collectors? They are still hounding us for money.

 

This is a long shot, but it HAS worked in the past for me. Simply state that expedite solutions FIRST broke, and therefore voided the agreement BEFORE you stopped paying/working for them etc. Stating that they broke the rules before you and having documentation to back it up will go a long, long way in court. Best of luck.

 

My wife and went to work for Tri-State in 2007 and knew right away we had messed up with the owner we chose. We worked there a month and the pay was so bad we changed owners. This was a lot better but the money just wasn't what we were told it would be so we got out of the business. We liked the concept and how it was suppose to work.
The first ones we went to work for did not send us a 1099 nor a final accounting. They still owe us $800 bucks. The 2nd gave us seperate 1099's instead of consolidating them
I do know that any in the expediting should be incorporated or LLC. The reason is that a terrible loss could be carried over to the next year. Most just usually run the business as a couple and file a 1040(A) with attachments.
Also all money used from assets before a business, if papered right, would be a loan to a business, a tax liability, and therefore a tax write off. This is hard to prove when money is co-mingled.

All drivers please note: The amount of the standard meal deductions went up to $59.00 a day when dispatched and not leaving(prorated) or heading home.
You must travel through at least one city on the list of higher expense cities to qualify. This is not hard for OTR drivers.
Another note:
Most drivers are not taking the max amount, and sometimes not at all, for business expenses that are deductable.
Almost anything purchased during the course of a trip, used during the course of business, not normally and customarily used when not working, can usually be used as a deduction. This can be a considerable expense that most absorb from their own pay.
I am sorry to hear you lost so much time and money. Looking back you probably wished you would have called the EPA about the fuel which would have been a hugh fine for the owner, and maybe taught him a lesson. Also, 27 gallons is a reportable quantity of fuel.
For any new drivers: If you find yourself in this situation do NOT hesitate, after refused calls for repairs, to take action. There are many ways this can be done. One is to explain to a DOT officer at a scale what is going on, and ask for a DOT inspection. Make sure it is a scale house near a truck stop and ask if you will be able to go to the truck stop before being put out of service.
This will cause repairs to be made, keep a driver from being held responsible for damages, and also from possible lawsuits.

 

Why would you work for them after you saw the truck to start with, You must be blind...

 

As you stated , the driver can be charged with a civil suit . That is a personal case against the driver in addition to any action against a corp. or LLC . The driver's personal assets are not protected when the driver is sued .

 

Are you sure about this, I believe there are penalties for not delivering employee W-2s by Feb. 1st. If money was taken for taxes but not reported, then that's also illegal.