If Swift has a corporate discount and does not pass it on to Lease/Ops, yes, it is another revenue source. Word I have, though, is Swift irritated some other corporations somehow and are not offered a discount on fuel. Could be BS. I don't know for sure. Rate is 92cpm plus FSC, which is 44cpm this week...loaded. deadhead is 81cpm no FSC. IFTA is figured by the computer and paid the same as the company trucks. If the L/O has paid more taxes than due, gets a refund. If short, pays the difference. Your questions were hidden amongst editorial remarks of corporate BS and rip offs. Hence, my response.
Actually Swift's contracts are pretty staight forward ... Long but simple. It states right in the contract that Swift will take any any discounts they negotiate on fuel purchases. Debate wether Swift is ripping people off by not paying it, is like debating that one company is ripping people off by paying a penny less than another company that is paying a penny more. Swift provides a very detailed IFTA accounting monthly. Miles run by state, fuel purchases by state, taxes paid by state and taxes owed. Swift also supplies a real time online record of all fuel purchases - not hard to bounce the 2 together and reconcile your IFTA taxes.
They are keeping track of my IFTA miles, not lumping me in with the entire fleet. I had just one load for the month of February, here is the breakdown-- State-Miles---Mileage Tax Rate--Diesel Fuel Consumed CA----342------0.000-------------49.1 OR----357-------0.1316------------0.0 WA----98--------0.000------------14.1 Mileage State Rate/Gal--Gal Used--MPG Used--Mileage Tax Amount CA----0.39-------49.1--------6.97--------0.00 OR----0.0---------0.0--------6.97---------46.98 WA---0.3750-----14.1--------6.97---------0.0 Fuel Tax Amount CA---19.49 OR---0.00 WA---5.29 I should add that I had gone up into Washington bobtail to visit family.In other words, I wasn't dispatched, I didn't tell my DM I was going to do that, they just keep track of that stuff right down to the last inch for each truck.
Thank You. Thats what I was wondering. Some companies offer a fsc loaded and empty. What they aren't telling you is they cut the fsc in half. So you get 22cpm loaded and then 22cpm empty. Sounds good to some people, until you start doing the math on it. If you run equal amounts of empty miles as you do loaded you basically make the same as getting 44cpm loaded and none empty. But when you do very little deadheading you are getting ripped off. I was hoping swift wasn't doing that. Actually no that debate is not the same, sorry. But if it states it in the contract and you sign it, then you accepted it.
Com se com sa ... exactly the point. It's in the contract. Accept it or don't sign. Nothing was hidden nor any attempt was made to confuse.
Precisely. And, as a direct result of that choice, it is not a ripoff. It was by choice, knowing the stipulations. With some companies, especially percentage companies, you do not get paid for deadhead at all. I ran into this with Prime. Deadhead was supposed to be figured in....by the driver. I'd get a really great $3.00/mile load...and then deadhead the same distance to pick it up as loaded, pay lumpers out of it and then pony up for tolls, too...28% of which (tolls) was reimbursed. Net per-mile after that, including FSC was about $1.10. Deadhead percentage at the end of the year, 13.5%. Net money-per-mile, same year, $1.08. My deadhead decreased significantly by going to a company that has to pay for it. My deadhead now is 3.5%. Average money-per-mile over the last half of 2010, $1.28. Net difference in fuel cost, just under 5cpm...higher at Swift. Still, a net gain to me of 15cpm overall. That's why I'm here.
Congratulations on the mpg. What weight are you registered at? OR ton mile tax seems a tad light for 80,000 lbs. I thought it was $.1638.
Don't know how Swift does it and don't know if it is still practiced today but in 85-87 when I was leased to Getter company trucks and O/Os were lumped together for fuel tax purposes. I used to get charged for states I was never in. Our freight was in the $5-$10 range and nobody much cared.
Regardless that you signed it, its still a ripoff! In no way shape or form should a company be making money off of your fuel purchase! I don't care what company it is. Scottie has the right idea, pay cash! Then they won't get any money back from your purchase. But I'd have to bet if enough of you did that, Swift would start making it mandatory to use the card or be fired. I won't comment on the Prime deal cause it would really throw this thread off coarse.