Need help with figuring power only rate.

Can you drivers give me some idea on a power only rate. Loads are customer's freight and customer's trailers. Trips are mainly south/south east and range from 125 to 1200 miles with most under 800 miles. Customer wants product delivered as quickly as HOS permits, and bring empty trailer back. Customer doesn't want any freight that isn't his loaded on trailers, so its one way loaded. Any help of suggestions you can offer is greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

You could probably do well at like $2.20/mi. You’ll do not so hot on the short runs but good on the long runs. However, that’s a selling point where he saves money in an area. My guess is he’s looking for you to be at $2/mi or under though. I would under no circumstance go below 1.75/mi.

Kinda foolish for him to not let you backhaul. Paying you empty coming back seems like a waste but nice for you.

 

That's about what I was thinking. I was thinking $4/ loaded mile. Thanks for the reply.

 

Day rate plus mileage plus accesorials.
Like $750 per day, + $x.xx per mile all miles, + tolls, + fuel surcharge, +whatever else for accesorials; tarping/lumpers/layover/extra stops/whatever.

 

Your quote sounded high at first. So I went back and read closely at what was being asked. All of a sudden it not only makes sense but is reasonable. Sounds like the customer wants top notch service. The low bidder doesn't always win and nor should they.

 

The OP asked how to figure the rate in the original post- that’s what I was responding to. Not what the rate should be. The numbers I gave were examples, not what I’d charge. You gotta plug your own numbers in for what works for you, and the market you’re in. Maybe those figures work for you/ maybe not.

Imo you charge a mileage rate only on such varied work, you’re showing your hand that you don’t know what you’re doing. You set yourself up to take a loss that way.
Work a mileage only plan thru on paper: “$4 a mile,”
But there’s no base line on a minimum with that scenario. You do 1 day a week or more on short haul and eat ####, worse yet, 5 days a week.

 

You start with what it costs to operate your operation, then go from there.

I'm starting to wonder how many owners actually know what it cost them to operate.

 

That's a goofy statement. Trucking isn't making widgets. It is a amazingly diverse field with a mind-boggling spectrum of "normal". Everything from running corn to the ethanol plant in 60 mile runs and sitting four hours waiting to unload, to coast to coast team operations.

To insinuate an O/O should be able to quote on every different run just by glancing at "his numbers" is ludicrous.

Labor cost is not constant. If the customer has a poor attitude, the deliveries are tight, have poor receiving hours, or the runs hit high traffic areas, the cost of labor will increase either through higher wages or through higher recruiting and training expenses.

That's just one factor. Is it an overnight run or daytime run? Is it urban, or rural? No touch or fingerprinted? Are the trailers well maintained, or do you have to count on failing some inspections unless you spend time fixing minor crap or taking trailers in for major stuff? How much time do you spend doing that?

To suggest to someone to "look at their numbers" is actually pretty useless in quoting an unusual arrangement like this.

 

Not at all. Time is of the essence. They don’t have time for you to be messing around with back hauls. Back hauls slow down the return of their trailer & burn up your hos.

OP, you have to see where his loads are going. You can draw circles and each layer the rate goes up, or you can price each destination individually. You need to decide this.

For the shorter runs take into account making 2-3 trips per shift.

You should have a minimum rate as well.

I run a lot like your asking. I mainly use my customers trailers and rarely ever do i run a back haul.

You need to charge enough for a round trip rate.

I’ll give a couple examples:

Load 1. 158mi round trip. $500

Load 2. 425mi round trip $1300

Load 3. 240 round trip $900

I won’t go into more detail, but these are some of the rates i charge for one of my customers. I show up grab their loaded wagon & hammer down the road to make the del...bust butt back and do it all again tomorrow.