i was 26 when i started im now 32 …and still like it the same as i did when i first started
Im 26, been driving buses for 2 years, hopefully going for my third attempt at the HGV soon… 
26 when I started - sadly I’m 30 now.
just turned 29…past class 2 2 years ago,started off at british bakeries…too tedious!im now tramping for a small firm in lowestoft and loving it!first got into trucks when i was about 14/15,when i was travelling with the fair…6 wheeler erf pulling a 40 ft drawbar (waltzer)wiv my 16 ft caravan on the back of that!obviously didnt take it on any roads 
back then i definitely had derv in the blood…and hair and eyes !!it got everywhere!
I’m 20, passed on the YDS when i was 19.
car when i was 17, moved onto sprinter vans when i was 19 all the way up to 21 when i passed my class c, did that for a year got my class 1 in august, only used it for 4 shifts, most of my work is class 2 but im one of the lucky ones with one of my agency, i dont get stuck on multi drop 
its easier to list what ive not actually done, never done any form of liquid or fuel, no wide loads (ive had loads that were probably 20cm wider than the truck on each side but thats it) ,car transport and containers.
ive done nights out, tramped for a week once but never again due to the wages. i get funny looks when i turn up to some places to deliver or even to drive the truck, i always get the your not old enough to drive that blah blah
i wish the government had a law saying that insurance companies cant say you have to be 25 to drive for some companies, if im allowed to do my test at 21 i should be able to get a job and not have insurance stopping me.
how are these kids who are gonna be 18 gonna get a job whent he rule change.?
gogzy:
how are these kids who are gonna be 18 gonna get a job whent he rule change.?
They wont, they will just have to wait even longer. Token gesture in my opinion towards the no doubt upcoming genuine shortage of drivers when the old guard deservedly retire.
kjw21:
gogzy:
how are these kids who are gonna be 18 gonna get a job whent he rule change.?They wont, they will just have to wait even longer. Token gesture in my opinion towards the no doubt upcoming genuine shortage of drivers when the old guard deservedly retire.
How many 18yo will be able to afford it
I think it will depend on their individual circumstances tbh.
If your truck mad you will probably pay for the license instead of the 1.2 Nova you have dreamed about since you were 13 but these are the kids that will end up driving trucks no matter what the hurdles, as thats their ambition and passion. These are the kids that I feel should be nurtured and guided into the industry as the “new blood” and will hopefully begin to put some pride back into the job. In a way that is what I feel the Young Driver scheme attempted to do and appears to have failed.
In reality for most 18 yr olds, they will go to college and receive free or low cost trade training so again our industry will lose out and be back to square one.
I know the arguments that our job isnt viewed as an overly skilled trade (I’m not concerned with that debate at the moment, hey its at least as skilled as a Travel + Tourism NVQ!) but what about making it into an NVQ style college course with various aspects such as the CPC, planning etc integrated within it?
kjw21:
I think it will depend on their individual circumstances tbh.If your truck mad you will probably pay for the license instead of the 1.2 Nova you have dreamed about since you were 13 but these are the kids that will end up driving trucks no matter what the hurdles, as thats their ambition and passion. These are the kids that I feel should be nurtured and guided into the industry as the “new blood” and will hopefully begin to put some pride back into the job. In a way that is what I feel the Young Driver scheme attempted to do and appears to have failed.
In reality for most 18 yr olds, they will go to college and receive free or low cost trade training so again our industry will lose out and be back to square one.
I know the arguments that our job isnt viewed as an overly skilled trade (I’m not concerned with that debate at the moment, hey its at least as skilled as a Travel + Tourism NVQ!) but what about making it into an NVQ style college course with various aspects such as the CPC, planning etc integrated within it?
that would probably be better, hae a one year course before they are even allowed to take a truck ont he road ont heir own.
but the government aint that smart, plus this is a stealth tax on us doing our job, rediculous
not many 18yo are gonna be able to afford it, plus they are gonna find it impossible to get a job unless the insurance companies and hauliers change their ways and give newbies a chance.
Im 20 stone, does that count? 
DS074:
Im 20 stone, does that count?
In a fight, yeah!
im 22 did my class 2 in september and my class 1 in october
wouldnt change it for the world its all ive wanted since i was 3 years old
i wanted to do euro work and was lucky enough to have my first trip last week
Im 23 and passed my car test at 17 and my HGV test in april this year…i worked in shops until 2007 but i always used to talk to the delivery drivers and looking back now i was destined to do the job i do now…i think we have the best job in the world i get paid to go to places my mates will never get too
What exactly is the insurance companies problem with Class 1 drivers under 25?
I can understand why car insurance gets cheaper once you get a bit older (and more sensible) - but surely the younger guys who’ve actually got themselves a Class 1 ticket in the first place have a whole different attitude/level of maturity than the driving (non HGV) population as a whole? 
In fact (and don’t take offence here multidrop guys - i’m talking about a minority!) i’d have thought that the 21yo who has wanted to drive an artic since he was 2 is probably less of a risk on the road than the 30yo who has just come up from 7.5t/Class 2 multidrop and has got ‘in a hurry, i’m bigger than you lemme through’ running through his veins, and tries to adopt the same technique at 44t !! (i saw a good example yesterday as I sat in stationary traffic watching a big yellow rig fly past on the slip road only to slam on the breaks at the end causing everyone else to shuffle out of his way as he was clearly coming out whether there was room for him or not! 
)
Talulah:
What exactly is the insurance companies problem with Class 1 drivers under 25?I can understand why car insurance gets cheaper once you get a bit older (and more sensible) - but surely the younger guys who’ve actually got themselves a Class 1 ticket in the first place have a whole different attitude/level of maturity than the driving (non HGV) population as a whole?
Yeah of course we do, every under 25 driver I’ve ever met has been passionate and taken a serious attitude to their profession.
However an insurance company will never give in, we are a liability and thats the end of it.
im 27, been driving vans since the age of 18, then rigid at 21 then artics a year later. the job i have now none of my mates take the ■■■■ out of me, they mostly are jealous of it to be honest! i have talked a few of my friends into doing their tests too, although i do think there will be a problem in a few years with a lack of drivers, but more to do with the costs involved in passing your test, i was lucky that my old boss put me through the lot, so it cost me the medical and that was about it
ROG:
Joshh:
As im 15 i dont drive anything apart from a little go in the car now and again, but my 2 uncles are drivers and i go with one of them when im off school and i enjoy that, im predicted grade c’s at gcse so i could do alot more but i think i want to be a driver no doubt about it
Start now with THE HIGHWAY CODE (Link) & MIND DRIVING (Link)
Yeah will do Rog thanks
Should i read through all sections of the Direct gov travel and transport?
Joshh:
As im 15 i dont drive anything apart from a little go in the car now and again, but my 2 uncles are drivers and i go with one of them when im off school and i enjoy that, im predicted grade c’s at gcse so i could do alot more but i think i want to be a driver no doubt about it
Get yourself the best grades you can, mate. Biggest mistake I ever made was to doss through school, prospective employers see a smart kid with poor grades and assume (with a fair bit of reason) that if he was lazy at school he’ll be lazy at work.
Ten years down the line it don’t matter so much because you’ve got the work experience to prove your merit, but when you’re 18/22 it does; not only that, but it only takes an accident at work, medical hassles (diabetes, etc) and that’s your driving career up the Swannee, and you’ve got nothing to fall back on. You seem an pretty switched-on lad; grab the education while it’s free, the older you get the harder it becomes to learn.
Good luck.