2012 Truck Apportioned vs CA Plate????

I can't believe they charge that much for a base plate in California. Most states won't tell you how much your base plates will cost until you turn in the application. You will use estimated miles the first year. Doing the paperwork isn't that difficult. All you need to do is follow directions. With IFTA you will need to file quarterly reports for all miles run. There really isn't much to it as long as you keep your records straight. With your apportioned plate running that high, it must include some sort of property tax. I thought mine was high this last year and I paid over $1,900. You evidently already have an apportioned plate. The only difference is that you will have more states on your cabcard than just California.

 

Apportioned plates seem to run somewhere between $1,100-2,200. Your plates will probably be on the higher end of that due to where you base. An apportioned plate bases the fees on the percentage of miles you run in each state. Your home state usually has a higher percentage of miles than any of the other states, especially starting out when you use estimated miles. Estimated miles are based upon what other carriers based in your state run. There is no charge to set up your IFTA account. If you are paying $3,400 for only running California, I would think you would spend less by doing apportioned. It is hard to believe that California charges so much for a plate just for that one state. If you decide to do apportioned I hope you will let us know what you have to pay. If you want to run outside California it would probably pay you to do apportioned in the beginning. You could start with 48 states and see where you run. You can always cut out states that you don't want to run once you are out here for a year or two. I have not been running the left coast but keep my apportionment just in case I decide to run out there. With all the new carb rules and with New York raising tolls to such a high level, I am giving serious consideration to dropping some states. I can't see supporting them when they do so much to cost me money and harm my business.

 

Yes. You pay for each juristiction. When you fill out your application you will need to check which states and provinces that you want to apportion. You will need to do the same with your IFTA. You can apportion for a single province or all of them in Canada.

 

I used to run Canada, but that has been a long time ago. You now need a passport to cross the border. It used to be a little bit of a pain, but after 9/11 it has gotten worse to some extent. If you want to run Canada you need to make sure all your paperwork is in order. I believe Ontario is the only province that requires Canadian authority, but you should check to be certain. Like I said, it has been a number of years since I ran across the border. As long as your paperwork is in order and your shipment has been cleared you should not have a lot of problems. I would check my wheelbase and they don't like a 10' spread in Canada. Just do some investigation about current requirements. I run steps and flats and base in Tennessee.

I have seen a few over sized loads going to Canada that pay well. Most of what I have seen don't pay any more than those in the lower 48. I can't see dealing with the extra hassle unless there is more money on the table. I have a friend who lives in a different part of the country who does cross the border fairly frequently with his flatbed. He usually gets $3/mile or better.

 

You will also need to add Canadian provinces to your IFTA account. I would check with those provinces that you want to haul freight so you can make sure that you have everything that is needed. As I stated, you will probably need to get authority to haul in Ontario. You can either call the ministry office in that province or check with one of the permit services. In fact, it is probably posted online.

You will probably need to keep the sliding axle closed for Canada. There is also a wheel base restriction on tractors. You should be alright as long as you don't have one of the extended hood trucks. You don't want to wait until you have a load and at the border to get a surprise.

Business has been pretty good the last several months. I could have been much more busy than I wanted. I have managed to get good rates on most loads. But, I watch where I go and do a lot of specialized freight. There has been a lot of hay that was shipped into Texas this year. I hauled one load and it paid well. It was the only hay that I hauled. I was offered 4 loads by another consignee but he didn't want to pay a rate that I needed. He was looking for someone who needed to come back home to Texas and would take them for "fuel" money. I can't imagine anyone taking one of those loads for the rate he was seeking to pay. Rates have generally been pretty good on hay this season due to the drought. I understand that rates have dropped to the high number of trucks wanting to haul the hay. Rates will depend in part on where you run and what you haul. If you base out of the west and want to run the western states, then rates can be good. It is the same running the east coast. If you want to run east to west then rates are usually not as good.