Hey guys excuse my ignorance I'm a new owner operator. I just bought a truck but I don't know if I should run under my own business name or use my dad's business name because he's already been in the business for 20 years. I'm trying to start working at this job but I don't have my MC number (I already have a DOT # and business name) and FMCSA told me that it takes at least 3 weeks to get the MC number. Since I just bought my truck I need to start working right away to start making money to pay for my truck. My dad is kind enough to let me be his "employee" and run under his name if that would be easier and he wouldn't even charge me, but I kind of want to use my own business name because it means something to me but at the same time I can't afford to wait a month to get my MC #. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Run under his authority until you get your authority set up. You won't be a part of his llc unless you sign paperwork allocating you ownership or a role in it. You will by default be a sole proprietor until you set up a different business structure.
Just get a lease agreement with his carrier to be legal, you can't just run under his numbers. Once you do that, save your money and run it until the cows come home.
You could run under his authority until you get ready to go on your own. But he will have to have to usual driver qualification files, drug test etc on you before you start running.
If he isn't charging you, just ask if he'd add "and Son" to the company. You cant beat an established DoT number and, from what I've read, it takes a while for a new number to gain any respect.
+1. Buy the LLC from your father. No new entry audit and depending on the state you're in, nobody will know who owns the LLC since they don't track ownership. If we learned anything from the Denver crash last April by Castellano 03 Trucking LLC, this an excellent strategy to escpae litigation and liability (so far).
