Carriers' mentality on late deliveries

Everybody here understands what a load out trailer is. I doubt any of these guys are booking them. They're a super cheap option for people doing the shipping and people doing the work. You think your $1300 -rate was a really good rate but the fact is by the time the carrier books some garbage spot freight onto your customer's trailer going down to Laredo it really ain't nothing to get excited about. There's going to be deadhead involved with picking up your trailer and any potential load that goes on it.

Laredo is, more often than not, a tough reload market for dry vans. Inbound rates to there are probably marginally better than many areas but are beat down so bad like everything else. So lots of deadhead out of there but if not that then getting a rate as low as yours outbound maybe. Basically it's a lot of work to cover big costs and maybe eek out some money. That's why your carrier doesn't really care and also why a more reliable/reputable carrier wouldn't touch it. It was a loser from the get go. And your carrier probably didn't even read the terms they signed because most don't.

 

I know exactly what it means, I am coming from the carrier's point of view. I know what the risks are and why we do not pull cheap freight.

YOU miss the point that every time the truck is moved, empty or loaded, it costs the same amount of money and trailer moves as a policy here are the same as if they were loaded - with some exceptions but not being a rule.

To me it is really simple, the freight is the trailer itself.

Setting up a dry van for freight to capture revenue within the move of the trailer seems to be something YOU should be offering to get the trailer there at the cheap rate you are offering.

This to me speaks of too many liablities involved, which is what I look at running the fleet.

Where?

I know of many cheap owners and managers of fleets who jump at the chance for this but they don't seem to last.

No I am implying they are new to YOU, the broker, and I am saying you have to have a standard where you just don't offer these time critical (it was) moves to a new carrier without "testing" them out first.

My point.

That's all good and well, but for years now I have two customers who have us move their trailers, it is not done at a discount, they know it and they seem to understand it costs money to move them, so they pay the bottom rate (30% above cost) to get them moved but we don't play games, they are treated as if there is freight on board and that way there are little problems with the move.

my critisim if you don't get it, is with the use of a new carrier, it is not with the process or the rate or anything like that. You need to build trust with the carrier before allowing this to happen at all. Your customer got screwed by the fact that you did go with someone new, and then complained that they took advantage of the situation when you could have stepped up a bit more and add an incentive for the move to get there within business hours.

 

People are to stuck on the rate you paid. What some guys here don’t understand is that $1200 rate can be five or 6 times more on that same trailer depending on what else is stuffed on there. I have an old friend that does load out and makes enough in 4 to 6 months to park his truck and spend the winters in costa rica. He has routinely made 10k on one trailer load and never leave the state so it can be very good deal. His tractor is 57 years old too. Lol.
Just a side note and slightly different subject. When the lady gets her trailer back have her inspect it closely. It may not have the “good” original tires or lights on it anymore. Seeing how it goes in and out of Laredo and all.

 

You can disagree all you want. Laredo is a dead hole. The only reason you got that load in the first place was probably because any in house carriers passed on it knowing it was a loser. You're a broker and those are the kinds of loads you get. Then your choice of carriers to book on it are mostly new and newer MC#'s of companies that can't even afford to buy or lease trailers to actually haul freight on. So they figure they'll run power only to make money and then reality hits.

 

We're not stuck on the rate, we're stuck on "why aren't people trying to build relationships when I'm offering poop rates".

No one has defended the carrier or his choices, but those choices are what should be expected when going bargin basement shopping. Just the fact that the trailer picked up on Thursday, can't be dropped until Monday limits and has to be dropped by Tuesday severally limits the options for the truck.

If the OP wants to build relationships, then she can do so. If she wants to move her stuff at the cheapest rate, she can do that too. Trying to do both is possible, but difficult and she's going to get burned along the way - it's the price of trying to do business that way.

 

From my perspective, failure of the company(driver) hired to move this empty trailer from point A to point B within the set time is this main issue. The power only company had no right to use that trailer outside of the purpose of the hired move, unless they had explicit permission from the trailer owner to do so. That’s my take, maybe I’m all wet on this issue?