As the heading says have you changed jobs for it to have been a nightmare and how do you avoid these crap firms. Have you left a good job and gone to some where else and thought what have i done.What are the signs you look for? Are the big firms better than the small ones have you got a nightmare story 
pot luck fella job could be good planners total planks
There are pointers of where to avoid.
The most obvious being a company that repeatedly and permanently advertises for drivers, 110% guaranteed its not worth a light, good jobs seldom need advertising.
Pay not in writing, person selling the job plucking random pay figures hours worked and likely work schedule from thin air, sod all written to back this up.
We’ve all dropped clangers in our younger days, you learn from it, find something else and clear off sharpish.
I went from a home delivery company with 8 or so 7.5s and varying amounts of sprinter vans, run by 3 competent people, 2 of which were drivers and no direct TM, where everything (virtually) ran well, to a company running 30+ home delivery 7.5s and a few sprinters, plus a few class 1’s.
The office is run by a bunch (6-8) of drivers mates (seriously) with 1 TM and 2 ‘team’ supervisors, where I really can’t explain how badly things go wrong.
Constantly advertising for drivers (home del) for 2+ years.
Agency staff outnumber full timers 3-1.
If you’ve a bulb out, it’s a call out.
15 hours is common. Reports of drivers pulling cards and driving back. The more legal ones ring in and get put up in a hotel. Share a room. Share a bed if you’re really unlucky. You’re expected back in at 6 the following morning to do another days work, but as you had a hotel, expect an even ■■■■■■■■ day.
The clever drivers know to check the depot eta and cancel jobs to get back within 15 hours.
The worst thing ? I didn’t even change company, just location.
I left a good job after a buyout & went for something a bit closer to home & a higher rate per hour, regretted it in the end & luckily enough I got my old job back & a pay rise 
I was considering a move. I know spmeone who works at tbe company but different depot. He is on a 48 week contract but regulaly gets overtime and takes home £120 more then me without overtime and I do more hours. Then I thought what if the depot near me is crap etc…so not done anything about it yet…the grass may not be greener even ifvthe money is far better
I gave up where I work now as I hated being a relief driver/drivers’ mate (always felt like an agency worker than an employee), and because of a niggling knee injury (in the end traced to a bad back). Went to a tipper firm with red cabs and blue tippers (based in the Marlborough area and not known for doing 40mph 
) and cannot for the life of me think why I did it. I’m still kcking myself now about it, I must’ve been ■■■■■■ or retarded or both when I took the job on. Why why why did I do it? Even I knew they were a ■■■■ firm to work for!! I’m winding myself up now over it, I’m going to the fridge for a beer…
This is one of the reasons why I don’t work for anyone specifically.
Well, I do. Me. If I don’t like something, I don’t do it. And still earn a reasonable living.
It’s got to be a bit nerve racking changing jobs. Though a decent wage increase is a good tempter!
Is there any tipper that does 40mph lol.
Personally I would rather work for a small company because you tend to be a person to them rather then a truck and wheels tend to be turning more.
Yep! Worked for one company who were on the whole pretty good if you went along with it, got fed up of all that so moved on… Could never have predicted what i was letting myself into, you didn’t stop until you were told to! They couldn’t get drivers full stop, not even agency drivers wanted to work for them, watched one turn up one night for a oner to Amsterdam and left almost straight away even after being begged to stay.
Why i dont mind working for agency , lets me explore different industries and foot in the door of depots and get to hear what regular staff are saying before i commit to a job .But hard to do when you have been shafted with drops lol,been with agency since january and tbh nothing appeals so far . But hopefully will change when i get licence back and eventually start class 2 work.