More Amazon Shenanigans

LOTSO · Feb 17, 2025

prostartom said: ↑

We are a seasonal private carrier that uses Amazon to help fill in during the winter months., yes it doesn't pay very well but it pays our leases on our trucks that would otherwise be sitting all winter and helps keep drivers making money during the slow winter months. Do I wish they paid more, absolutely but it fills a need we have. I understand that this will upset some people who don't think we should be running for basically expenses, but it does help us in the long run.

We initially started running for Amazon back in 2020 and we actually had to increase our insurance amounts in order to qualify for Amazon. At that time there was no waiting requirement to start hauling for them like today where you have to wait, I believe 6 months.

Over the years I have seen some very sketchy looking trucks running for them as it is definitely the easiest way to start moving freight with a new authority. Most of the drivers I see in the facility's don't even do a walk around of the trailer they just hooked to, they just make a mad dash for the exit once they have the airlines hooked and the legs halfway cranked up.

Unfortunately, a lot of carriers get out of the higher insurance requirements by "leasing" onto another carrier. I see all the time trucks doing the magnetic sign dance just down the street from the facility or at the closest truck stop. Amazon has been cracking down on this as they now require all drives who check in to be on the carrier's account. You have to send them pictures of your license and a selfie in order to get registered. They also will randomly ask for a selfie while under a load to be sure the person driving the truck is actually under the carrier's account.

The flip side to that is it makes it harder for the legitimate carriers to keep up with the increasingly intrusive demands of the buggy technology. The last time I was asked for the selfie it was in the middle of the night and my selfies kept getting rejected, probably due to lighting even though I submitted selfies with and without the camera flash. I was informed that another failed selfie request would cause me to be permanently banned from their facilities even though I have done nothing wrong and am probably an above average safe driver.

Back in the fall our Amazon account was suspended due to my drivers picking up a couple of speeding tickets during a safety blitz. It caused our unsafe driving basic to jump above Amazon's standards, it has since dropped down enough to qualify for Amazon again but we are still waiting for Amazon to update and reinstate our account. This was bad for the company as we completely missed the holiday rush and we had to put a few drivers on lay off.

So, I guess the point of this post is to say that Amazon has increased their standards for carriers but some of their loads are probably still being transported by carriers who do not meet their safety or insurance requirements due to shady "leases" and magnetic sign swapping. And their attempts to keep that from happening are actually hurting legitimate carriers who are just trying to do a good job.
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I always wondered who was taking those $1.35/Mile loads...

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