Hi all ,this is my first post. 
I have been taking a close interest in the topics raised on this forum.
I am currently awaiting the decision on my Operators Licence application which is due hopefully by the end of April.
I am looking to set up a new haulage venture, starting as an O/D and then maybe (wishfull! ) adding to the fleet.
Having read the previous advice i know some of you will be thinking i would be crazy to enter the industry when some of the big players are going to the wall.
My question is that being based in Doncaster, which is surrounded by huge new car compounds and Immingham docks only a short run down the M180,
it would appear there is maybe a need for Car Transport Hauliers. Has anyone out there had any experience of such type of work and more importantly can it pay.
Any advice would be appreciated as i will be going into this venture with my eyes wide open!!! 
I think you will find that all these car compounds are already serviced by the big players. A lot of these multi million pound contracts are won and lost over pennies. Richard Lawson, Toleman. Abbey Hill are long gone
Someone like Dixons may be interested in some cheap sub contract haulage
Thanks for the info Wheelnut.
I did wonder about how easy it would be ,and thought it would be a non starter.
I am just exploring all avenues of potential business in and around my local area.
Any advice on Container work would be appreciated.
Would it require the purchase of a Skelly or are these normally hired from the companies you are doing traction for??
Can it pay ? What are the likely rates? Weekly earnings ?
A worry is that if the likes of Alec Petch can not make it pay then that does not bode well for a new starter!
All advice is appreciated
Thankyou
As i understand it you can hire a skellie from any of the big players, and they deduct the appropriate amount before paying you. I seem to recall reading that this can be quite expensive compared to hiring one from dawsons or TIP.
Rate wise, I think that at 44T, almost everyone is paying £1.10 a mile.
£ 1.10 a mile !!
How do these people survive?
Fuel alone must be pushing 50p /mile plus also deduct the hire of a skelly!!
Its about time direct action is taken by all hauliers or they will be no haulage industry as is happening with all recent big companies going belly up.
People have to stop working for nothing. This is the only way rates will increase.
From my financial forecasts i would require a minimum of £1.60/mile to establish a reasonable return, and i dont see how anyone out there can really do it for much less.
Realistically ,what rates are achievable and am i being really naive to expect anyting like the rate i have quoted .
Again many thanks.
£1.60 a mile, that’s what I came up with when I looking into it. And realistically, with transport the way it is at the minute, you have more chance of getting blood out of a stone. I think that there is some work out there at about £1.30-£1.40 per mile, but that work has undoubtably got a huge waiting list to get on it.
Something to think with containers is that you spend a lot of time sitting around, and will probably spend upto half you time running with an empty box, so your fuel ecomony should be quite good.
I started on my own this year not in heavy transport but with a smaller rigid 5-6 tonne carring capacity 9800 gvm. the vehicle is a tray. my aim is to do the work that alot of people dont want to do. you tend to get higher rates. I steered away from working as a subcontractor to a major transport firm. yes they have the work but you end up giving away 15-20% of your earnings to them in commission. I do some hand unloading and I’m not working full hours yet but getting close. and I’m clearing more than I would as a subcontractor already. I own my truck outright so if I sit for a day or so its ok. my focus is looking after my clients customers and I stress this to the prospective customer. it helps .
my mileage is around 800-1000 klm a week so I keep fuel costs down. I work on an hourly hire basis. this is in australia though so the market is quite different here. you can jsut buy a truck have an incorparated business with the appropriate insurance and off you go and find customers. I work for one of the largest steel companies delivering fencing and I have another fencing supplier I work with as well as doing other odd jobs when this is quiet. I would be calling around and making appointments and trying to source work b4 getting a truck. I was originally going to get into the vehicle recovery area (towing) but found other work with out the silly hours. towing is a very good business with some value attached cause of the specialised equipment you use.
just my 2 p’s worth.
meggala
when your an owner driver you will cart anything.
my set up with a car on top.
