Right - I have some photos, and I’m sure some of the more hard of thinking on the forum are going to jump straight in and say this is a pack of lies. But lets start off by just ignoring this if you don’t like it.
Last night I had to do a shift in a really nice well looked after truck. It was a fancy model with about 5 steps, an inverter, a fridge, a microwave. Even all the cosmetic stuff like tassles and curtains pulled slightly forward. Each to their own. I did my best to leave it as I found it. I’m not hear to insult trampers - it had about half a dozen air fresheners that made me feel sick (as did the silver ashtray on the table he had which made it stink - each to their own I suppose. I just drove with windows open to mask it.
However I had a problem. The regular driver has mounted a TV above the windscreen. But it was covering a fair amount of the screen. To the point where I couldn’t see the mirror in front of the screen. It also had a big tablet mounted in the middle of the screen next to his personal dashcam. On top of this there was a BIG childrens toy on the dash on the nearside.
So I took all this off. I also removed (and then replaced at end of shift) his steering wheel knob. I put it all back as best I could at the end of the shift. I really did try and leave it as I found it.
However - the driver has gone mental. I’ve done a fair amount of work for that firm, they even offered me a job. Someone from office called me and said he’d stormed off home as he claims all his stuff has been messed around with. Apparently, my boot marks are all over the cab - and he is really not happy. My boots are not that dirty and I took them off before chilling in the bed when I was being tipped.
So if you left your cab like this would you think that is was a problem if someone moved that stuff? My reasons for moving it was so that I could see the road properly - and because I really didn’t fancy attracting the attention of DVSA etc. And I did put it back. So if you were a tramper would you find this objectionable? I’ve offered to call the driver and explain this - but I’ve been told it’s best to leave it until he has cooled down.
I’m currently wondering what my allocated motor will be like tomorrow morning, after being off for a week. Hopefully it’ll be okay and Mr Trackie won’t have stolen my coolbox or had one off the wrist onto the bunk. Whatever, I’ll sort it out in what ever way I have to. If that means calling the management out to sort it, so be it.
If I had a driver do what your mate allegedly did, I’d leave him at home. Nobody who reacts like that has any right to be in charge of an HGV.
I made a thing of completely emptying my cab when I went on holiday. That way I knew none of my stuff would be touched. If you made your best to replace the stuff you moved back in as near the same place as you found it then the driver is throwing his toys out the pram. The fact he stormed off home makes this even more hilarious.
Happen (which it probably didn’t) in Mr M’s posiiton I’d refuse to drive the thing in the first place. Yes, I’ve done exactly that on two occaisions and been given the keys to something looking less like Gamley’s toy shop window at Xmas.
Crap in the line of vision wouldn’t be staying here, and a bloody steering wheel knob would be the very first thing removed because it has no place in a lorry, its a bloody lorry not a fork lift truck.
What i would have done is asked for another vehicle when presented with this motorised harem, if none available i would have asked for instructions from the company, put the ball in their court, either they approved the removal of this garbage or the job cancelled.
I don’t agree with laying on the bed of a vehicle obviously issued to a regular driver who nights out in the vehicle, that is not on, unless the job entails a night out, and then i’d be asking the company if they would rather pay for a hotel seeing as the vehicle is allocated to someone, again puts the ball in their court.
If you leave your stuff in when you go off you have to accept that someone else is going to touch your stuff, especially if it’s as extreme as you say. It sounds like a driver who always has to find something to complain about, probably better for everyone that they went home.
fingermissing:
Why would you lay on the bed.Did it have he’s bedding on?
I didn’t really lay in the bed - I sat on it and slouched back reading my book (lights are not good enough to full lie back and read). I was delivering to AO RDC in Crewe. Anyone familiar with it will let you know they leave you in cab whilst being tipped. I got there at 2.30am but was booked in for 6am and they wouldn’t tip me early as I was meant to be on day shift. I was not willing to sit in a Mercedes chair for 3.5 hours plus to save someone’s feelings!
I was actually meant to be shunting for the company - and agreed to help them out by taking that vehicle when another driver couldn’t do it. I wish I’d never bothered.
I have zero interest in riling anyone on trucknet. For what it’s worth I am fed up with trying to do the right thing and upsetting someone. If I drove it in that state I couldn’t see properly and risked hurting someone and DVSA hassle, if I took it out and put it back I risk upsetting a drama queen. You can’t do right for doing wrong. Frankly, I’d rather meet up man to man and justify my actions. But the company don’t want to me to do that so I’m asking from for the perspective of regular trampers.
Happen (which it probably didn’t) in Mr M’s posiiton I’d refuse to drive the thing in the first place. Yes, I’ve done exactly that on two occaisions and been given the keys to something looking less like Gamley’s toy shop window at Xmas.
Spot on advice. And in future I wouldn’t drive a vehicle like that.
I have photos but don’t want to identify the driver (small chance he’s on here and the stuff is very personal). Even down to him leaving his money and satnav in (which I never touched and never would).
It was a new model and a flashy truck. The company were trying to entice me to work for them more I think by giving me this one. But he obviously didn’t know it would be going out as all his stuff was left in. They have been calling me quite a bit asking if I’d work for them full time and I’ve said I’m happy on agency. Even offered to let me contract for them directly with my Ltd company rather than through the agency.
My mistake was not saying give me the keys to an old renault rather than this brand new (40k km) Mercedes - but apart from that I’m scratching me head thinking what did I do wrong? Company are not that bothered as they tried booking my for tomorrow night. But I have my supermarket work which pays better with none of this grief.
Stormed off? If I was his boss I’d tell him to get a grip or he won’t be getting paid until he decides to actually start work. Oh and also remind him that as much as he thinks it’s HIS truck it does actually belong to the company and in order to get maximum efficiency from the fleet sometimes it will be sent out with other drivers rather than sitting there not making any money.
Drivers need to respect trampers trucks and try and leave it as found and not cover it mud, but if stuffs blocking your view it’s coming straight off.
^^^^^^^^^^^^
+2
all you have to do is read pack the previous postings to see the format.
its been a quiet 2 weeks for the flak to die down and hers more of the same.
if it ever hapened,and if someone actually was put on an agency shift like that then it would give them an ideal opperchancty to reject the truck and sit scratching their balls on the clock until a suitable replacement was provided,but as supermultiblues previous observation points out,then none of this actually happened,so its open for speculaton in an imaginary circumstance.
if i worked for a company with a truck like that,then it wouldnt be given to a limper in the 1st place.
I’m on holidays this week . All my “tat” has been removed from the truck right down to the matress topper . If it resembles the truck I parked up last Saturday night when I get it back on Monday then fair enough . I’ve left a couple of dusters and some cleaning stuff in a bottle but I don’t expect anyone will have used it . They seem to spend their time looking through the cupboards rather than actually tring to keep anything clean .Monday will be spent cleaning it to something that you could actually live in and not somewhere a dozen hens have been in for a month . If its a mess I’ll take plenty of pics send them to the Boss and raise hell .
Have to ask though were you on a night out or were you just lying on the bed for a 45 minute break ?
beefy4605:
I’m on holidays this week . All my “tat” has been removed from the truck right down to the matress topper . If it resembles the truck I parked up last Saturday night when I get it back on Monday then fair enough . I’ve left a couple of dusters and some cleaning stuff in a bottle but I don’t expect anyone will have used it . They seem to spend their time looking through the cupboards rather than actually tring to keep anything clean .Monday will be spent cleaning it to something that you could actually live in and not somewhere a dozen hens have been in for a month . If its a mess I’ll take plenty of pics send them to the Boss and raise hell .
Have to ask though were you on a night out or were you just lying on the bed for a 45 minute break ?
No nights out mate.
I’m a night driver mainly. And I’ve never done a night out in the traditional sense.
I got to AO RDC at 2.30 am (ish) and they told me that they wouldn’t tip me til 6am because it was a day shift job. No problem with that. I got about 200 pages of my Jack Reacher book read.
There was bedding on the bed - but obviously, I just say on top of that as I’m not taking my kit off and sleeping in some random bed.
I think this thread has reaffirmed I did not a thing wrong. Next time I am there I’ll try anf find this driver and have a word. I’m a nice friendly person - but this has caused me upset. He clearly didn’t know his vehicle was going out. Big misunderstanding. He obviously didn’t think it would go out - and I should have said give me one of the older trucks parked in the yard.
