brokers

There is no such thing is a backhaul. This is the mentality you should have. I haul nothing under 2.00 a mile and most is closer to 2.50. Its people that haul less than everyone else (ie. 1.60 or less) that causes trouble for the rest of us. You have to have your head in the sand if you think that anything below 2.00 a mile is a good rate to keep yourself in business. I and others didnt come up with 2.00 a mile or better by majical or wishful thinking its by experience and also the knowledge of the prices of everything keep going up. This guy must have got his numbers from a mega carrier as they have the same mentality.

 

Over the last 25 years I've been in several different industries. Most have been commodity industries, where the brand name of the product doesn't really matter. In every single industry the complaints are the same. Some people undercut the market and others complain that they can't get a good price for their product.

The thing is, you're not going to change the industry. What you have to ask yoruself is if you want to be a part of it or not. If you do, you play within the industry, making the best of it, trying to outsmart the competition. You will never stop drivers from taking on cheap freight nor will you stop brokers from offering it, nor will you stop shippers from demanding it. As long as it's legal, it's the way it is. If you can't make it work, you're in the wrong business.

If you're able to get high rates always, great for you. I have a driver that makes money based on miles driven. If I have him sit and wait for a high paying load, he will not make money. So, I have to keep him moving, at breakeven if I have to, just so I can make money when the rates are above average.

 

There is a reason why they are the mega carriers.

I actually don't call any route a backhaul either. When I plan where to send my driver, I check the rates out of that place first, then I decide if the whole thing is worth it. My routes usually consist of 3-5 legs, so they're not dedicated in any way. I can usually select routes where I end up with money in my pocket and a rate above $1.60 average, including deadhead. Probably closer to $1.90 on a dry van. But this doesn't mean that I won't get paid at least something on every single leg.

 

SMDH
1) There is no more free market in this country for every action there is a reaction
2) For some reason you have no Ideal about rates. Rates are lower now than they was 10 years ago and operation cost has almost doubled over the past 10 years so it is a two way street now you do your research

 

IL to SD - 525 miles, $2730 from LS. 23K, legal load. $4+ is not magic and not weekly but do atleast one over the top rate loads a month (and not the 100 miles). Not that hard to find if you have a solid reputation with right brokers.

 

Again, I have not seen anything even close to that. If you can get it, good for you. Rates like this really don't make sense unless this is some type of specialized freight. In fact, if you're getting these rates, the brokers aren't doing their jobs. They can book this trip for $2/mile all day long. Why would they pay you $4?

 

What about when the IRS sends you a letter saying you owe X amount to them?

BTW double that .36/mi driver salary. We are not just drivers anyway we are the mechanic, the accountant, etc.

 

What I see is everyone has too many excuses for hauling cheap.

I wasted Friday calling brokers. I'm still at home with no load yet for Monday. And I'm eating very well.

 

No they can't. Not all customers accept just any carrier. Some, and it is becoming more common, want a carrier with a certian CSA score. And some brokers want to keep customer happy and want carrier they have good record with.

In the case of this load, LS had 4 loads of pipe that needed to be off of the yard by Monday at the latest. Customer has to have all material off yard by Wed. of next week. Waiting for someone that would haul it for less than $2.50/mile could cost them. I am sure several other factors played into costs like when equipment to load was being moved, etc.

I have done $4/mile van loads when customer was behind and was getting daily fines.

I see these types of rates weekly and only in position to take advantage every so often. One factor is brokers I work for understand I will jump through just about any legal hoop if they are paying right. And he told me that when he was booking at $3.25/mile for one of the loads he didn't bother calling me because he knew it wasn't worth it.

And with the decreasing capacity, carriers with top CSA ratings are going to start seeing much better spot market rates. But make no mistake about it, past practices of taking cheap rates because it worked into your overall plan will be hard to get away from. And average to low CSA scores will kill you.

 

BTW, only a desperate, uneducated carrier would take this load at $2. I run IL to SD/ND on regular basis and have never done it for less than $3/mile. You will see it sit on the boards at $2.50 for days.