New to trucking, need advice...

What happened to the good ol days where you get a piece of paper in your hand every pay day - *sigh*

 

Those were good old days?
Really?

My bank does not even have a store in the state I live in now.
How much trouble and costly is it to have to cash a paper check anywhere these days?

 

Judging by the replies several people haven't worked for a major OTR carrier.

Your fuel card is called a ComData card. It works like a gas card when you're buying fuel but your employer has it set up to act as a debit card as well. One card handles both accounts. My first OTR job was set up this way (not Knight/Swift). There are problems with using ComData as a debit card. One, they charge you a $1 fee per transaction (that was years ago, it has probably gone up) ATM/Debit/transfer all incur fees. Two, instead of using the universal Visa or Mastercard networks like most debit cards they use the Maestro network. The linked page mentions Mastercard because Mastercard owns Maestro, but your ComData card only works on the Maestro network NOT the Mastercard network. Costco and Target accept Maestro,most retailers don't.

Knight/Swift won't let you direct deposit all your pay. It's cheaper for them to use ComData for payroll than to set up their own payroll department. ComData does this so they can charge you fees. If they let you go around the ComData card ComData doesn't get any fee revenue. Your best bet is to use the ComData app to transfer your pay to your bank account and use your own debit card for your needs. Yeah, it sucks that you have to pay a fee and wait a day for the funds to transfer but that's your best, cheapest option.

ComData can come in handy though. My current employer direct deposits my pay but if there is some problem with my check and I'm on the road they can put money on my ComData card the same day. Much better than mailing a paper check to my house or waiting for a bank transfer.

 

Endorse the check, open bank's app on my phone, take a picture of the front and back of the check. The first $10,000 is immediately available in my account. Old bank (Chase), new bank (USAA) and credit union all have had this for at least 5 years.

 

Are you going to Phoenix Arizona? I took the course with them about two years ago and it was an awesome experience.

 

I never heard of a company putting your paycheck on a fuel card.

 

Those were great .

You mean when they mailed it to your house or PO Box that you wouldn’t be at for weeks .?

and your bank has never heard of comchecks and wouldn’t accept them for deposit ?

 

We offer a choice, direct deposit, or cheque.

 

Why do you Canadians always misspell words? Lol

 

I worked for a company where you had a choice of direct deposit or live check. If you had direct deposit you would get a pay stub with all your withholding info on it. They went to a system that was strictly direct deposit and you had to go on line to see your pay stub.