Hi everyone, I wanted to ask if this forum is the right place for vehicles to 3.5 tons? If there is a bigger forum and related to 3.5 tonnes please give me directions.
I just have few questions related to up to 3.5 tonnes. How this type of transport looks in the United Kingdom and from Great Britain to Europe. Is the local market dominated by the couriers only? or Man and a van and this type of small jobs? Do British companies do business in Europe? or they cannot compete with European ones?
But in short, courier companies such as City Sprint have driven rates down to ridiculous levels. Lot of self employed drivers with vans rely on a big parcel company - if that is the route you go down, you might be technically self employed, but the truth is you are as much a wage slave as a PAYE employee, but with added risk. The only way to make money is to work direct for a customer but thats difficult as one day you’ll be busy, one day you’ll be quiet and when you get your second customer you’ll be wanted by both on the same day and neither on the following.
Euro is knackered by East EUs, you simply cannot make it pay unless you are very specialist.
Much like truck work really.
Not impossible to do, but I’d say it’s harder to make a living out of than trucks because more people have a license, simple economics, more there is of something, the less value it’s deemed to have.
I worked as a light haulage/courier in the UK and Europe for 5 years covering 4000 miles per week in a LWB Sprinter
The work situation has now become a joke, many foreign drivers with no insurance, let alone courier insurance/goods in transit or public liability. They run around on red diesel, don’t pay congestion charges as the ANPR cameras can’t send them bills. Typically three in a van, two sleeping (in make shift bunks in the back) and one driving, the wheels keep turning…
Not sure what you are looking at doing or what your idea is, but honestly, forget it!
Shiply/getvan/anyvan sites have killed the industry, everyone wants to pay next to nothing. I was working 100 hours plus per week and sleeping in the van. I only carried on as long as I did through known contacts and specialist work that i did.
Markyboy1008:
covering 4000 miles per week in a LWB Sprinter
.
Well it was never going to work if you were part time
Seriously though, bang on. I can’t ever say 100% don’t do it as that’s how I started, but as Markyboyvsays, shiply etc have made the marketplace a lot different and not for the better in this case.
