0/o with universal am can

If your paperwork/Bill of lading shows a reportable quanity or and X in the haxmat box, you are required to have a hazmat license to haul it, no matter the quanity. We flatbedders run into this a lot with roofing and glue. Like a 5 gallon bucket is a reportable quanity needing a license to haul but not needing placecards.
OOIDA is wanting to change the law so we only need the license if it needs placecards. I heard on Roaddog trucking-Landline that OOIDA is trying to change this law.

 

I am new to UACL but so far it isnt going very good at all. In fact I am going to move on. I new better to lease with someone but did it any way as I bought into there sales pitch. Its worse then I could of imagined. I am out in the North West which makes things hard but they have no freight out here. They want me to haul brokered freight and take 25% of it. Every time I turn around they are deducting something. I took a load to GA it was oversize for $1.85 and it was direct freight. They assured me when I got there they would get me some great loads. Well 5 days of turning down $1.50 a mile I finally got out for $1.8 to LA then a couple crappy partials to home.
The people are rude most of the time. The only nice person is the person trying to get you to haul for nothing then when you turn them down they quickly turn rude as well.

I will never figure out how people work for these type of rates and then to have so many deductions. I had my own authority for several years and ran 48 states and never had this much in fees. My truck is paid for and even still I dont know how I would make a decent living working with outfits like this.

Oh yeh the oversize load I took they gave me a gross for the load and then a break out so I could see what I was getting. Well they charged customer several hundred more for permits then what they cost. So I assumed I got the difference. Wrong.. And the added money for the stepdeck that I provide they took 25%. Not sure how this is fair.

 

I do not and won't haul oversize less than $3.00 a mile pluse $100 for each state for permits just did one to fort Collins,co few weeks back out of Houston $4,600 to the truck 12ft wide that's what most over size loads should pay $4.00 a mile pluse

 

I have done the lease on thing before I got my own authority after the 3rd one I fig out they were all the same but these were local companys even worked for ACME the way I see it if there going to make 20% or more of my money they also will have to earn it I always stood up for my self if they had me parked for more than a day I was calling them every 30mins
ACME was the worst they are self insured but still took 17% of the gross of the load on every load it was just a number game with them what They put in there pocket was 47% of what they charged just my first year I paid $26,k for insurance now I don't pay that for all 3 of my trucks

I think it's a good deal for companies to have a load board you can look and see what's available not just a dispatcher saying they don't have anything while they play on Facebook all day if I can go on a load board I get freight why can't they find me something or get on one a find me a load but they won't they don't care
The last one I was leased to called after being at home all week called Friday with a load at 3m they ask are you available for a run? I said nope just cleaned out my truck they said for what I said "im waiting for the repo man to come get it" I didn't have the money to pay it because I haven't made any money two weeks later I was no longer leased on

 

I'm on with UACL, but I've got a RGN so I'm different than you. All I can say is you live in the Northwest? Good luck gettin ANYTHING out of there. i haven't been there in 4+ years for that reason. The only thing they make in the N.W. is wood products (lumber) and with the housing market in the tank, well..... They do make Manlifts out of Seattle and Moses Lake, but again....housing market. With the economy being like it is, you will need to redefine your role in the trucking world. Either you're gonna have to move, or starve....it's that simple

 

Yeh its not looking good at all. I have been home all week looking for a load. I call the agents pretty much non stop and watch the board with no luck. I post my truck being in the area and havent got one call. Now when I posted it in GA or CA I got 10 to 15 calls a day. I know the NW sucks for freight and I am really gonna have to make a decision to keep at this stressful job or move on. I am thinking of going back to the oilfeilds which will probably be what I do.
The worst thing about this is that I talked to UACL for off and on for probably a month before even applying to lease on. I was concerned about the freight out here and if I could do any better with them then I was doing on my own and they assured me they had plenty of freight. But I guess I have been hosed before why should I be surprised.

Again this is my first time working with a large trucking company. It is turning out to be just what I thought it was. These really arent even trucking companies in my opinion. It is just someone with lots of money that hires people in the industry to do the work. So by putting up there money they can make quite a ROI.
The worst thing is the charge of 25% on even the brokered loads. If they would cut that to a reasonable rate then paying them for there assistance might be ok. But 25% off a load thats already had so many hands in it turns into nothing.

Thanks for the info everyone and good luck.

 

Have you looked on uacl load board and called agents and gotten rates before you leased on?

I see lots of transformer loads near me but they only go for a buck and a half. At that rate these loads don't even exist for me. Whoever is hauling these should be bee-otch slapped and have their CDL yanked!

 

let 'em haul it for that. more freight for me when they go out of business....and they will. Used to be that this was a fun WAY OF LIFE. now, it's a business that you have to keep your eye on every step of the way.

 

I did do some research prior to leasing on but it wasnt enough. The biggest issue for me is the lack of freight out here in the NW. They dont have much of there own direct freight to begin with let alone any out here. If you can haul direct freight for them I could probably maintain a decent average but again they have a very small amount of direct freight as far as I have seen.

I called on some transformers while I was laid over in GA and they stunk.

 

Well I'm looking on their board and I see 35 loads out of WA, one going to Pensacola, FL, only 26k, Flat or Van.

Another one $2050. for 810 miles, after their 25% that's 1537.50, divided by 810 = 1.898 mile. I don't know if they offer fuel surcharge on top of it. Of course, yes it goes to Canada. What did you expect, it's WA.

There are others from their agent that has a bunch of loads of plastic, and of course lumber etc. What's the problem?