Owner operator to small transport co

I have the opportunity in the near future to expand my company from 1 vehicle to 3 vehicles.

Problem is I’m not sure I want to expand.

I think the biggest problem is finding the right people to employ.

Anybody else on here gone from being an owner operator to an employer??

Any tips??

Greetz Geoffo.

Same here, i have more than enough work for 2 or 3 trucks but i couldnt be arsed with all the hiring and firing so i.ve always just left it at one, seen some so called drivers nearly bankrupt a mate with nicking diesel for there cars, damaging trucks and trailers (and they were both English drivers) not for me, i couldnt sleep at night, on that note , give it a go, what have you got to lose … :smiley:

Many, many moons ago, from an o/o to an employer, and 30 odd years later back from an employer to an o/o.
Only if your rates are good to very good. We went back because the rates did not follow the costs and profitability was plummeting.
Over the years you must have met some realy good drivers, but there is, for an employer, no perfect driver, just as there is as an employee, no perfect boss.
But there are good to very good drivers out there, and if you can find them, reward them accordingly, so you can keep them.

There will always be the hassle of somebody sick, on holiday, a broken down truck, trailer or whatever, so your phone bill will go up :wink:

edit; spelling

Don’t be put off Geoff ,with the right driver and good rates/ job it’s easy however I have to add for a good while you will be pulling your hair out feeling stressed comparing what you’d have done / got done with what the driver has done or not done after that once the driver has settled in take it steadier you self and let the slave/s earn you some money .

I do not want to put you off, if you can find the right driver, and the rate is ok, go for it.
However, as Dan and Chaversdad said, you will never know a driver properly untill he has worked for 3 months for you.
Also the easy(ier) :wink: life is gone, there will be more paperwork, more official bodies to deal with (social security, wages to account for, ministery men for tacho checks…), maintenance, parking etc to sort…

But sometimes, you may not have a choice, as your customer grows, he may want you to grow with him,
maybe, having 3 trucks might give you the chance to find direct work…
There are many reasons to go for it, but there are as many to beware, the only one who can crunch all the numbers is you, so as long if the money is good and there is some sort of long(er) term engagement from your customer, why not ?

Geoffo:
I have the opportunity in the near future to expand my company from 1 vehicle to 3 vehicles.

Problem is I’m not sure I want to expand.

I think the biggest problem is finding the right people to employ.

Anybody else on here gone from being an owner operator to an employer??

Any tips??

Greetz Geoffo.

You need three drivers, and you become the spare man, watching, prompting, sorting…and let your troubles begin :open_mouth:

If you continue to drive, you will become frazzled unless you get yourself a couple of superstars [doubtful IMO]…. :unamused:

Ive spent years talent spotting drivers, who Ive either worked with, or met en route…and I`ve still been miserably let down.

A bad one will break you psychologically, and you will develop a very deep mistrust of people pretty quickly, trust me :open_mouth:

I think I`ve got a cracking crew nowadays, but I still find myself pulling my hair out with them daily :open_mouth:

Good luck, as you are going to need it…

go for it geoffo

I know my route was a bit different as I started with a van and then got other vans before venturing into the big stuff, but the issues are broadly the same.

As everyone else says, if you can get a good driver he is worth his weight in gold. I’ve had some right [zb]s, luckily got good solid drivers that are staying at the moment.

I’m glad I made the move from owner operator to take on people despite the many ups and downs over the years.

Thanks for all the advice so far.

I think one of the biggest problems I face is getting over the fear hurdle of venturing into something new.
I’ve had a straight forward run in up to now.Same job pretty much all the time.

Bald. I have direct work with the truck I have. The other vehicles will be for a completely new ( to me) project.

just make sure that 4 times the income is worth 4 times the greif.
make yourself the spare driver as its bad enough sorting your own crap out than trying to sort someone elses when your still driving.
i worked for a nfl subby here who had 4 trucks.typical scenario subbing over here just a busy poor man taking into account the financial outlays.
if you smoked,or religously bigoted,or just not the right format,then you never got a job.
3 years later,he has 25 units,about 50 drivers who did nothing but girn and bellyache ringing him up 24/7 and wiping out weeks of profit at a time with damage and accidents.
he pulled the pin,paid everyone off,and went back to 3 trucks with 3 of us driving them alone,plus a cpl of spare drivers.
i say that would be a normal example.

Geoffo:
Anybody else on here gone from being an owner operator to an employer??

Matt.

And we all remember how that ended in tears before bedtime.

Geoffo:
Thanks for all the advice so far.

I think one of the biggest problems I face is getting over the fear hurdle of venturing into something new.
I’ve had a straight forward run in up to now.Same job pretty much all the time.

Bald. I have direct work with the truck I have. The other vehicles will be for a completely new ( to me) project.

It may be wise to get another customer, not all your eggs in one basket and so on…
Something new should be nothing to be afraid of, it might even present other opportunities in the future, but it may also present a few hurdles you never tought of, as it is completely new.

What I see, as important, is :
1: you will be financing truck, diesel and wages for a while, untill your new customer pays, can you afford that without stretching yourself financialy?
2: do you know a few drivers who you think would be an asset to your company and are they willing to work for you ?
3: how well do you know your new customer, and can he (they) be trusted to provide work for a number of years (the time to pay for your new (secondhand) lorries )

If the answer is yes, go for it :wink:
If it is a no for one of these questions, beware and be very carefull :exclamation:

I’ve done it this year. Van drivers are easy, artic drivers are a pain. Second artic is currently stood because I cant get a trained orangutan to drive it, let alone a decent driver so I am out maxing my hours each week to earn enough from one to pay for two while I train up the van drivers to take on one of the artics and tie them in on a 2 year contract. I can find more van pedlers tomorrow, in fact I have a waiting list because I am willing to train drivers up for C+E, I’ve got a queue of B drivers wanting a seat in one of my vans now.

That being said, I am still happy I did it, yes its a lot of work but unless I want to be an O/d when I’m 50, going to work every week because bills have to be paid, I have to move forward. Once we have a good supply of artic drivers, which will come with our training programme if not by direct applications, we can grow the fleet and build it into something which will let me have more time off. Besides, I’m better off driving a van myself anyway as in an artic I’m governed by tacho and the van drivers are governed by domestic rules but under the domestic rules, as the owner, I am not held to them and can do as much work as I can safely manage.

nsmith1180:
I’ve done it this year. Van drivers are easy, artic drivers are a pain. Second artic is currently stood because I cant get a trained orangutan to drive it, let alone a decent driver so I am out maxing my hours each week to earn enough from one to pay for two while I train up the van drivers to take on one of the artics and tie them in on a 2 year contract. I can find more van pedlers tomorrow, in fact I have a waiting list because I am willing to train drivers up for C+E, I’ve got a queue of B drivers wanting a seat in one of my vans now.

That being said, I am still happy I did it, yes its a lot of work but unless I want to be an O/d when I’m 50, going to work every week because bills have to be paid, I have to move forward. Once we have a good supply of artic drivers, which will come with our training programme if not by direct applications, we can grow the fleet and build it into something which will let me have more time off. Besides, I’m better off driving a van myself anyway as in an artic I’m governed by tacho and the van drivers are governed by domestic rules but under the domestic rules, as the owner, I am not held to them and can do as much work as I can safely manage.

I know a couple of van operators who have orangutan problems Nick, the only upside to a chimp in a van compared with a chimp @ 44t…is slightly less damage, and they still have recruitment problems, as van chimps normally stink of weed :open_mouth:

nsmith1180:
Besides, I’m better off driving a van myself anyway as in an artic I’m governed by tacho and the van drivers are governed by domestic rules but under the domestic rules, as the owner, I am not held to them and can do as much work as I can safely manage.

Not really, still only meant to do 10 hrs day driving, I jump in & out of van & on tacho & still keep proper records after an alkward vosa stop years back, if it all goes wrong badly & you mow down that bus shelter full of kids, they can piece together driving hours by fuel purchases, cameras etc & the office work & rest by computer & phone records etc.

That doesn’t mean the odd cheeky 12hr van drive or something doesn’t happen, it’s practically impossible to not on occasion, but certainly not the more regular 16hrs I did a decade ago, but if accounted for & rest taken its a risk minimised.

Anyway fair play to anyone expanding, I can’t cope with the stress & grief of it all, the odd part time guy is about all I can handle & I’m rubbish with handing over control of clients & my equipment that I’ve worked hard to obtain & an abrasive loudmouth, inattentive loader of expensive & fragile loads or a mechanically hard & inept fool can quickly ruin both.

nsmith1180:
I’ve done it this year. Van drivers are easy, artic drivers are a pain. Second artic is currently stood because I cant get a trained orangutan to drive it, let alone a decent driver so I am out maxing my hours each week to earn enough from one to pay for two while I train up the van drivers to take on one of the artics and tie them in on a 2 year contract. I can find more van pedlers tomorrow, in fact I have a waiting list because I am willing to train drivers up for C+E, I’ve got a queue of B drivers wanting a seat in one of my vans now.

That being said, I am still happy I did it, yes its a lot of work but unless I want to be an O/d when I’m 50, going to work every week because bills have to be paid, I have to move forward. Once we have a good supply of artic drivers, which will come with our training programme if not by direct applications, we can grow the fleet and build it into something which will let me have more time off. Besides, I’m better off driving a van myself anyway as in an artic I’m governed by tacho and the van drivers are governed by domestic rules but under the domestic rules, as the owner, I am not held to them and can do as much work as I can safely manage.

Out of interest why can’t you get an orangutan/driver? I assume it is the money you are paying? Does it really then work out cheaper to train a driver up, what happens if he fails the test? Then pay the likely extra damage you get with a new driver (voice of experience :blush: ) rather than put an extra quid or 2 on the hourly rate to get an experienced driver and save the damage and delays? Thats before you get your van driver his new licence, a few weeks experience and he buggers off and you have to start again. To be clear I am just a driver but am curious is all

kcrussell25:

nsmith1180:
I’ve done it this year. Van drivers are easy, artic drivers are a pain. Second artic is currently stood because I cant get a trained orangutan to drive it, let alone a decent driver so I am out maxing my hours each week to earn enough from one to pay for two while I train up the van drivers to take on one of the artics and tie them in on a 2 year contract. I can find more van pedlers tomorrow, in fact I have a waiting list because I am willing to train drivers up for C+E, I’ve got a queue of B drivers wanting a seat in one of my vans now.

That being said, I am still happy I did it, yes its a lot of work but unless I want to be an O/d when I’m 50, going to work every week because bills have to be paid, I have to move forward. Once we have a good supply of artic drivers, which will come with our training programme if not by direct applications, we can grow the fleet and build it into something which will let me have more time off. Besides, I’m better off driving a van myself anyway as in an artic I’m governed by tacho and the van drivers are governed by domestic rules but under the domestic rules, as the owner, I am not held to them and can do as much work as I can safely manage.

Out of interest why can’t you get an orangutan/driver? I assume it is the money you are paying? Does it really then work out cheaper to train a driver up, what happens if he fails the test? Then pay the likely extra damage you get with a new driver (voice of experience :blush: ) rather than put an extra quid or 2 on the hourly rate to get an experienced driver and save the damage and delays? Thats before you get your van driver his new licence, a few weeks experience and he buggers off and you have to start again. To be clear I am just a driver but am curious is all

Don’t want to be a negative nelly, but I’m in agreement with kcrussel, if you are getting orangutangs, there must be a reason. We all get them, I even had a recommendation from one of the current drivers for a complete muppet, but out of the current van drivers, there isn’t one that gives me sleepless nights. Personally nsmith, and I’m not saying you are wrong, jsut my take, you can tie them into a two year contract, but if they go apart from wages, you won’t get the money back in all likelihood. I think for such a small and young firm, I’d stick with trying to attract a decent driver rather than training.

My advice in this case is relatively simple.

Dont.

nsmith1180:
I’ve done it this year. Van drivers are easy, artic drivers are a pain. Second artic is currently stood because I cant get a trained orangutan to drive it, let alone a decent driver so I am out maxing my hours each week to earn enough from one to pay for two while I train up the van drivers to take on one of the artics and tie them in on a 2 year contract. I can find more van pedlers tomorrow, in fact I have a waiting list because I am willing to train drivers up for C+E, I’ve got a queue of B drivers wanting a seat in one of my vans now.

That being said, I am still happy I did it, yes its a lot of work but unless I want to be an O/d when I’m 50, going to work every week because bills have to be paid, I have to move forward. Once we have a good supply of artic drivers, which will come with our training programme if not by direct applications, we can grow the fleet and build it into something which will let me have more time off. Besides, I’m better off driving a van myself anyway as in an artic I’m governed by tacho and the van drivers are governed by domestic rules but under the domestic rules, as the owner, I am not held to them and can do as much work as I can safely manage.

Careful how you come across in your post mate,

im a 50 yr old owner driver who after 20+ is more than happy with my 1 truck, your no Eddie Stobart yet and your Barronwood days arent that far behind you

This thread/topic is useless and pointless without some input from mssr Robert k