Stupid question alert !!!

It's really a % of the gross rate to haul that freight. I can only speak for what I do, which is chemicals/ tanker. As an O/O I get 65% of the gross rate plus 100% FSC. Each company structures it differently so there is no stock answer. The FSC can range from 26% to 36% of the gross rate. Just depends on the company and how my company negotiated the rates + FSC. Some companies will screw the driver out of some of the FSC. They may say 100% but only give him 70% but word it by saying its 100%. Then pocket the difference. It's a racket like many things. It's sometimes difficult to figure it all out. I'm always pressing my co to give me the gross rates but for some reason it's like pulling teeth. You just have to be persistent and keep at them.
Get with a solid reputable co, it should work out for you. But caveat emptor.
Good luck.

 

Yea it just depends on the company. I was getting about .43 cpm fuel surcharge.

 

Its a joke companies run on O/o's and lease drivers to make them think they're getting great money on their work and that they're buying fuel for less than $3 dollars a gallon..
At the end, the truck's money is the "to the truck" amount. Give it to me raw, how much is the load paying me gross.

 

FSC is a way of making sure that the shipper and carrier don't take a bath on long-term contract rates because of the volatility of fuel prices. There are many ways of setting it, but the usual method is to key it to $1.25 per gallon on a truck making 6 mpg... arbitrary figures of merit, but that's how it works. If you take the national average fuel price at say $4 per gallon...

($4.00 - $1.25)/6.0 = 0.458

or the FSC rate for that week would be 45.8 cpm. That's on long term contract rates only. Loads contracted off of the spot market don't get fuel surcharge... normally you negotiate fuel costs into the rate for that particular load. This really doesn't affect a company driver at all... you get paid your agreed rate per mile; it affects what your carrier gets from the shipper for you to pull it.

 

Iron Pony's explanation is a very good one. Others are good also. I run loads that are simply bid loads so the fuel surcharge does not effect me. A broker will tell me where the load is, what it is, how much it weights and where it is going. They then tell me how much the load pays. I then act like they are nuts. I shoot them a counter offer and they act like I am nuts. This goes back and forth until we arrive at a final price. Off I go, but not for less ......

That works good for single loads but I could not agree to do that same load for that same price 2 years from now as I have no idea what the cost of fuel will be.

You will see that some lease purchases have fuel surcharge built into the lease. They will pay you 100% of the FSC. Why wouldn't they? You have to pay for your fuel so the FSC is due you. Just don't trust them on what that is?

http://www.dylt.com/gwt_site/NationalFSC.pdf

The above is the site where the chart is for figuring out what the FSC is based on the amount at the pump. You then have to figure out the average price at the pump. It is all base on 6mpg so if you get a higher mpg then you make money. That is way companies pay bonuses. They are not paying you what they should but they are at least moving in the right direction.

 

The only stupid question is the one you never ask....

 

I had a girl ask me if I would respect her in the morning. That was a stupid question. I really didn't think she could track me down.

 

OK ya got me on that one.....but it sounded like a good line didn't it?