apparently it costs just £500 to get an HGV licence and there are hundreds of jobs available according to the mother of a 20 year old aspiring truck driver. where this information comes from i dont know but i did point out that it will cost far more than that and the jobs are few and far between. he is also unaware that he will struggle to find any work as a 21 year old plus they like 2 years experience regardless of age.
i have been in touch with a local training provider requesting a rough estimate to go from cat B to cat C including provisional, digitach, drivers CPC etc etc etc as an all in price guide to pass on. he is currently training as a mechanic so i reckon he should at least finish the training and get his HGV on the side as he can use it later when things pick up and he is gaining ‘experience’ just by having it.
where did he get such ill informed information? i feel sorry for anyone who throws a big wad of cash at their licence just to find out that the real world is not the pretty picture that someone painted for them. with so many highly employable drivers looking for work just now, what chance would a young new driver have? 
not alot scanny, it cost me about 2 grand to get my class 2 and class 1 so 500 to get your class 2 would have been a godsend
but its probably some idiot who knows nothing who told them that
i know how hard it is as a young person, (passed class 2 at 21 and class 1 at 22) how hard it is to get a job, im 23 now and still struggling.
gogzy:
not alot scanny, it cost me about 2 grand to get my class 2 and class 1 so 500 to get your class 2 would have been a godsendbut its probably some idiot who knows nothing who told them that
i know how hard it is as a young person, (passed class 2 at 21 and class 1 at 22) how hard it is to get a job, im 23 now and still struggling.
2 years ago it cost £1000 for a 5 days class 2 crash course. Luckily i didnt crash but i did pass. 
£500■■ I could have saved some money, lol. It cost me £800 for C and £900 for my C+E and I was lucky to get a job straight away at 23 because my father-in-law knew someone who wanted drivers. It was a bit different when I went for agency work tho, was always told they want some much experience for C and even more for C+E. Guess I’m lucky that the agency I worked for managed to get me in with a big company, who I know work for, but I class myself lucky as I’ve heard a lot of other people at 23 have a hell of a time finding a job.
scanny77:
apparently it costs just £500 to get an HGV licence and there are hundreds of jobs available according to the mother of a 20 year old aspiring truck driver. where this information comes from i dont know but i did point out that it will cost far more than that and the jobs are few and far between. he is also unaware that he will struggle to find any work as a 21 year old plus they like 2 years experience regardless of age.
i have been in touch with a local training provider requesting a rough estimate to go from cat B to cat C including provisional, digitach, drivers CPC etc etc etc as an all in price guide to pass on. he is currently training as a mechanic so i reckon he should at least finish the training and get his HGV on the side as he can use it later when things pick up and he is gaining ‘experience’ just by having it.
where did he get such ill informed information? i feel sorry for anyone who throws a big wad of cash at their licence just to find out that the real world is not the pretty picture that someone painted for them. with so many highly employable drivers looking for work just now, what chance would a young new driver have?
The internet, as when typing in lgv training loads of ‘national’ training centres sell a false story to those who read their info regarding lack of jobs etc
I’m in that boat and its little to none
And the price of £500 where did they magic that number from?
ive been lucky aswell with the agency, at 21 was getting the good class 2 shifts, class 1 shifts are rare but i do get them every now and again.
but im now back workin on vans for another agency but i get a decent rate witht hem for vans, £7 an hour so i dont complain.
i have no idea Rog but i suspect that this lad has not been on this site. if he had, i wouldnt have heard all that drivel from his mother. this was a twist of fate today which will turn out to be lucky for this lad. i wont let him be mislead by whoever or whatever gave him those ‘facts’. when i get some real information i will go back to her with it to pass on to him.
i had a similiar problem Gogzy. at 21 i was driving artics for an agency in coventry. at 22 i couldnt get class 2 work from an agency in near andover even though i had some commercial experience. they told me to come back when i was 23 and even then it was only because i offered to go out as a drivers mate. i had to be persistant to get any work and a year later i was trunking for SPAR through them with a wagon and drag. in most cases it isnt just a matter of passing a test and walking into a job. it happens but its very rare. his mother was going to advise him on getting his 7.5 licence first but i said that is a waste of money and is just another test for him to pass which he would bypass by saving a bit longer and going straight to class 2. i still reckon he should finish his current training first though as a mechanic. at least that gives him something to fall back on while he is waiting for driving work and the magic 2 year barrier. being in grangemouth means he will probably end up with driver hire being paid crap money and getting crap jobs. i certainly wouldnt like to be in that position, especially with the current climate
Do I assume that you will now be pointing him (and his mum) in the direction of this site 
scanny77:
i have no idea Rog but i suspect that this lad has not been on this site. if he had, i wouldnt have heard all that drivel from his mother. this was a twist of fate today which will turn out to be lucky for this lad. i wont let him be mislead by whoever or whatever gave him those ‘facts’. when i get some real information i will go back to her with it to pass on to him.
i had a similiar problem Gogzy. at 21 i was driving artics for an agency in coventry. at 22 i couldnt get class 2 work from an agency in near andover even though i had some commercial experience. they told me to come back when i was 23 and even then it was only because i offered to go out as a drivers mate. i had to be persistant to get any work and a year later i was trunking for SPAR through them with a wagon and drag. in most cases it isnt just a matter of passing a test and walking into a job. it happens but its very rare. his mother was going to advise him on getting his 7.5 licence first but i said that is a waste of money and is just another test for him to pass which he would bypass by saving a bit longer and going straight to class 2. i still reckon he should finish his current training first though as a mechanic. at least that gives him something to fall back on while he is waiting for driving work and the magic 2 year barrier. being in grangemouth means he will probably end up with driver hire being paid crap money and getting crap jobs. i certainly wouldnt like to be in that position, especially with the current climate
yea ive had friends ask me about it and i always say if you really wanna get it get it, then dont even try using it for 2 years just stay where you are, they go on bout how i am lucky but with driver hire as ive known here since i was 18 and back then i was doing pretty much anything for her, i left to go to uni and she told me to come back when i had my truckl licence so i did and im doing not too bad is pose, could be better.
yea its soo boring going back on urself from class 1 one week to vans the next but im being paid right now so i dont care too much, im still with nas even though i dont get much with them, last shift was december and that got cancelled about an hour into it as i got refused into bellshill, was for tradimar. but they are good guys.
if hes in grangemouth he should try manpower, im with them the now, just got 4 days this week from them, ok its in vans but im getting more in the vans for them than driver hire pay for class 2 work. as for dh grangemouth well…i had bother with tem when i was 18 so yea lol
Theres an ad in the sun most thursdays become an HGV driver and earn £600 per week. I dont think theres many experinced drivers earning that at the moment let alone a new pass.
i will be inviting him here Rog. i am going to use my own local knowledge to advise the lad too though and no doubt newer drivers like Gogzy will also have advice to offer too. i didnt do my training up here so i can only go with word of mouth when it comes to the training companies. plus the general advice is second to none and anyone with a bit of sense would get a varied response rather than relying on one persons opinion 
Gogzy, what happened with tradimar? i loved that job. the girl in the office was a bonus too (Lisa) 
Been on the websites for DH. no vacancies Dundee or Grangemouth. I would like to see those Ads stopped until they can prove them to be true.
scanny77:
i will be inviting him here Rog. i am going to use my own local knowledge to advise the lad too though and no doubt newer drivers like Gogzy will also have advice to offer too. i didnt do my training up here so i can only go with word of mouth when it comes to the training companies. plus the general advice is second to none and anyone with a bit of sense would get a varied response rather than relying on one persons opinionGogzy, what happened with tradimar? i loved that job. the girl in the office was a bonus too (Lisa)
yea since hes in grangemouth it shouldnt too hard to get to livingston so i would advise himt o go with happy hour for the training. the instructor (paul) is top notch, doesnt talk in giberish, gives yout he easiest way to do what you have to do and is helpful aswell, plus he was an ex trucker who went onto instructing.
well i went to tradimar, got the truck did the checks etc then nipped round to the morrisons rdc and got as far as the gate house, asked if i had been assesed told them no and basically told to {zb} off. headed back round told them and they wernt too happy with morrisons and yes the girl in the office is a bit tidy
they seemed like a good lot to be working for, i had originally went in to do shunting but got asked if i wanted to go and do a run for them which being a newbie id jump at the chance. i still got my 8 hours though but even still woulda been happy with 4. think it was about £12 an hour or something.
morrisons is new to me mate. the regular work i did was starting at 1pm friday, taking the truck to asda (west mains, opposite falkirk footie stadium) to collect a load, tip in aberdeen, park up overnight and bring a load of fish back. then start at 1pm sunday, back to asda, tip in aberdeen and run back to base. there was one job i had which was running around up there and one job where i came back empty after a night out waiting for a non existant load (not the best organised company i have worked for) but when you are being paid to sit on your arse, do you really mind? i did have a few hiccups which werent my fault but i would go back there in a second. i wish i was able to do that job on saturday for them. 2 nights out running down to milton keynes, leicester, birmingham, coalville and home. i was offered it on thursday and declined then again on friday night. if it had been friday morning i would have tried to sort something out. still, thats the way it goes sometimes. you cant always accept short notice jobs