I have read a lot on here the last few days and thank goodness for this forum, very educational in the truck driving world.
Over the last few months I have been deliberating on doing Class 2 as a major career change. This coming Saturday, I am going for my medical and getting paperwork sorted out at Wallace School of Transport, so this is the start of hopefully a new career for me. Its going to cost me a good few quid no doubt but fingers crossed it will be worth it in the long run.
My only dilemma if I pass Class 2, most jobs say minimum this or that experience, isn’t this a bit like the ‘chicken and egg’ scenario? I guess I’ll have to take whatever donkey work is available via the Agencies and build up experience from there, is this the norm to get started? And what about Class 1, same scenario again? Minimun experience etc etc?
Let us hope I am making the right choice but you don’t know until you’ve tried?
Good luck! If there is one thing I have seen, its that this industry rewards those, who work hard, search hard and think hard, about what they are doing, who they are doing it for and how they are doing it.
The rest are miserable, whinging, journeymen who enjoy telling you how bad everything is in the industry.
Best of luck again, and don’t forget to let us know how your training goes.
F-reds:
The rest are miserable, whinging, journeymen who enjoy telling you how bad everything is in the industry.
Should I be offended?
Experience is an often asked question and the truth is that it’s not too hard to get a start as long as YOU are prepared to start at the bottom and work your way up. Don’t be under the illusion that you are going to walk into the best gigs straight off the bat…
Yes you will see plenty of jobs asking for 1 or 2 years experience, and while at times this may be down to the firms insurance, there are plenty that put this down as a preference!
So as long as you’re up for a bit of graft when you first start out and do the jobs others with experience don’t want, there is nothing in my opinion to stop you!
Thanks guys, it kind of reassures me that I will start from the bottom as expected and progress from there and fingers crossed have a fun filled career ahead of me for the next few years…
mac12:
How old are you and what have you been doing?
Hi, I’m 48 years old, currently run an engineering factory, fantastic pay etc etc, all perks slowly going and new owner a complete proper billy hunt! No sideways move for me as the field I’m in is dying away unfortunately. I don’t want another managerial role, just a regular job but I’ve loved trucks from a young age! I was the kid who wanted to be a truck driver but university and a well paid job got in the way! Just chasing my dream…
mac12:
How old are you and what have you been doing?
Hi, I’m 48 years old, currently run an engineering factory, fantastic pay etc etc, all perks slowly going and new owner a complete proper billy hunt! No sideways move for me as the field I’m in is dying away unfortunately. I don’t want another managerial role, just a regular job but I’ve loved trucks from a young age! I was the kid who wanted to be a truck driver but university and a well paid job got in the way! Just chasing my dream…
Ideal then, as long as you’ve paid all your bills already!
My advice is be patient if you can afford to be. I passed my Cat C 15 months ago with plans of giving up 20-odd years of being a plant fitter. I’m in my mid forties and decided I wanted to deliver the plant for the rest of my life,and not roll around on the floor up to my elbows in grease all day when I’m in my sixties. The company i work for has two artics and I can’t afford C+E for the foreseeable,so i had to start from scratch.
Because I’m employed I could afford to be picky. There are plenty of Cat C jobs (around the south east at least) that pay a wage. Whether it’s a ‘living wage’ is up to the person. I turned a multi-drop job down @ £8.40ph. I wanted experience but not at the expense of getting into a financial hole.
I had two problems: I’m skilled in my current job,so get a skilled wage,but I’m unskilled at Cat C,so there wasn’t any jobs to cover my bills. I was also a newbie with no experience. I joined an agency and they were really good and patient with me,but nothing doing for a year. Then last week she came up trumps,i start this Monday driving an 8-wheeler delivering plant for a wage that pays my bills,albeit long hours we’ll see how my new job goes.
Like I say,i realise that i’m lucky in the respect that I could afford to wait as long as it took. Now it seems the hard bit is to come,getting a GOOD understanding of tachograph rules,WTD rules,the London lorry ban rules,etc etc
Yes I was lucky. We’ll see how it turns out. And it’s working directly fort the employer. But there’s plenty of work about for a new driver if you’re not fussy about what you’re hauling and the wages. I’ve always thought agencies were a bad thing,but nowadays it’s pretty much the only way to go. And .I seemed to have stumbled upon a good one. I learned that even companies don’t directly advertise anymore,they use an agency to sort through the CV’s and forward on the best ones. So my advice is be patient and get yourself on the books of a good agency. It’ll turn out alright in the end.
A lot of employers see agencies as “try before you buy”, which works both ways…
Generally after 12 or 13 weeks through an agency, a firm can take you on without paying a finders fee!
And that was another thing I learned,quite often you work your probation with the agency, which presumably is a low-risk thing for the employer. If you’re not suitable they just send you back. If they like you they take you on full time. Like you say, try-before-you-buy. The last time I used a tachograph it was a paper disc with wax on it,so I know that I’ve got a lot of learning to do. And fast!.
I’m also lucky that one of the drivers here has done just about every agency job going,he’s a very good driver and a nice bloke,and he’s giving his knowledge to me. Little tips like add two minutes to each break. Take 17 minutes not 15,take 47 minutes not 45,to allow for starting or finishing half way through a minute. It’s all learning and I’m loving it cos I like learning . I’m fully aware that most new drivers haven’t had the luxuries that I’ve got to get started.I’ll get a couple of tachograph CPC modules in soon to really drum into my brain EU rules and WTD.
There was a point where I was getting disheartened with it,wondering if I’d wasted a lot of time and money,but patience is a virtue
Thanks gents, it is all sound more reassuring with more of an insight to getting work once and if I pass the Class 2. Fingers crossed! Medical tomorrow and pick up my reading material, so I’ll be grafting over the next few weeks studying.
Yes Class 1 will be on the books at some stage but no doubt I’ll pick up good info along the way from you experience drivers.
Find a good agency,take advice from a driver you know you can trust,and once you’ve done your CPC,try to do a day per year. So you haven’t got to sit in a classroom for 5 days on end again. They’re my newbie tips to other newbies
Cheers for that! I’ll have a good chat with the training place tomorrow, they’ll probably be sick of me as I’ll ask a load of questions but saying that they might answer them before I ask.
Yeah the CPC thing, looks time consuming but spread over 5 years, I’m always a last minute person so I’ll plan well ahead before its too late !
I can’t praise my CPC man enough either. He knows his stuff because he’s a transport consultant and 7 hrs doesn’t seem boring when he’s teaching. But perhaps that’s because I want to learn. He helped me out with website links to tachograph simulators etc,stayed behind when everyone had gone home answering my myriad of questions that was probably boring the pants off him, and even gave me his mobile number saying if I need to know anything just ring him up. But like I say,perhaps he can see I want to learn. The only bad experience I’ve had so far out of all of it was my first driving examiner. What a miserable git. If I didn’t quite hear his instructions he wouldn’t repeat it. So far it’s all good. Post updates how you get on
Nobby_Clarke:
I can’t praise my CPC man enough either. He knows his stuff because he’s a transport consultant and 7 hrs doesn’t seem boring when he’s teaching. But perhaps that’s because I want to learn. He helped me out with website links to tachograph simulators etc,stayed behind when everyone had gone home answering my myriad of questions that was probably boring the pants off him, and even gave me his mobile number saying if I need to know anything just ring him up. But like I say,perhaps he can see I want to learn. The only bad experience I’ve had so far out of all of it was my first driving examiner. What a miserable git. If I didn’t quite hear his instructions he wouldn’t repeat it. So far it’s all good. Post updates how you get on
Perhaps he appreciates talking to someone who can string a sentence together!
Well to be honest,each time most of the class either weren’t interested or couldn’t speak English. Maybe I was a breath of fresh air!. I felt sorry for all the self-employed/owner-drivers. All the time their in the classroom they’re not earning.
It hasn’t got many,but I’ve become a fan of CPC,particularly for new drivers. What with running under two sets of rules,different makes of tachographs,etc I learnt a lot of things that I shouldn’t have learned ‘as I go’. Mind you,because I’m old I swerved two of the modules .
I start my new career on Monday and so far my experience is a good one. To answer the OP,it’s not easy,but if it was everyone would be doing it. If job offers don’t come flooding in,don’t get too disheartened. Something suitable WILL turn up. I agree with others on here about dealing face-to-face. It’s easy to turn someone down by text or email or ignore it. And if you’re standing in front of them they can see how enthusiastic you are
I just came back from the driving school, had the medical, which was no problem, booked a 5 day driving course, got the tacho card application off, licence sent off too, got tons of reading material etc, got that theory test online thing set up which looks fun to use.
So it looks like I will be earning my Yorkie bar soon!
There were quite a few people going for the medical today, and overall I found Wallace School of Transport very good, had a good chat with the fella who processed me, went through everything, answered all my silly questions etc so all was good!
Having chatted to a few fellas there who were going for Class 2 their firms are sponsoring them, lucky them! I’m self funded so I’ll go hell for leather in passing, other than that at least I’ll get to drive a lorry on my course lol
