I have been both sides of this fence.
As a Forks, the drivers I had the biggest issue with was our own drivers.
Our drivers would have loading priority between noon and 5pm. This was in part to encourage other hauliers to come in the morning, or in the evening. (Unloading times 6am to 9pm. Any driver arriving after 9pm would not be tipped till 6am, as the night shift had no loader.)
Our drivers would often drive straight into the yard, instead of queueing out on the road. They would not stay out of our way (we used Hubtex sideloaders with 6meter stillages, so had massive blind spots.) Drivers were supposed to stay in the cab, or stand in a waiting area. One of our artic drivers would put straps over the stillages as you loaded them, so he didn’t have to climb the trailer. He was well known for doing this, and on 2 occasions I ran him over. I refused to unload him in the end. Luckily, I had the complete backing of my boss.
As a driver, my boss always told me that we got paid to collect, not to deliver. So if I got any ■■■■, I was to just carry on with my day.
With this in mind, I always took the first answer. So whenever I turned up at a drop, and I got anything like ‘you missed your slot, you are too late, or we don’t want these’, I used to reply with ‘OK, sign this to say you are refusing delivery, and I will be on my way.’
Amazing the amount of times they suddenly found time to unload me.
When one of the Harry Potter books came out. On the day of release, I had 4 pallets on. One for each of the Makro stores we covered (Bristol, Reading, Pool and Portsmouth). My run was to deliver these pallets. Nothing more. I was told that each store is expecting me, and regardless who was waiting I would have priority. I was to go to Portsmouth first, be there for when they open, then work back ending at Bristol. Portsmouth and Pool went without hitch. I got to Reading, and there were 8 wagons on the road, 2 on the slip way, and one on the bay. I reported to goods in, said I had a pallet for them. And I was told ‘There’s a queue, you will have to wait.’ I asked them if that was their final answer, and was told it was. So I asked for them to sign the docket saying refused delivery, then went on my way. I just get back onto the M4, and the cab phone rang.
‘Makro reading want to know where you are?’
‘I have just left there, I am on the M4 heading for Bristol’
‘Hows the run been so far?’
‘Good, up until Reading refused their pallet.’
‘. . . . . . Why?’
'There were a dozen wagons in the queue, and they told me I would have to wait. I told them I couldn’t, and so they signed my docket saying ‘refused delivery.’
‘OK, I will call them back’
5 mins later
‘Turn around, go back to reading, don’t queue, go straight into the yard. A forklift will be waiting for you.’
So I go back, ignore the queue, reverse down the slip, with a load of angry drivers telling me off for queue pushing. The rear doors are opened, and someone dived in the back before I got out the cab, by the time I got to the back of the wagon, the pallet was out, and they were doing up the doors. The manager apologised to me, made the goods in guy apologise, then sent me on my way.
Rest of day went without issue.
With forkys in general, my main run was Oxfordshire. Most of the places I delivered to had female forkys. I only ever encountered bad forks when on other runs. And usually, with the bigger companies, the forks are only in a bad mood because of their boss.
