According to a piece in the Guardian today, Fellows Transport say driver ask the following first
“The first thing most people ask at interview is what kind of truck I’ll be driving. They want light bars [spotlights] and things – we haven’t got any fleet-spec trucks, it’s all added extras”
Now I’m not driving at the moment but it wouldn’t be the first, second…
theguardian.com/business/20 … in-england
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Unless the hourly rate starts with a 2, I’d want to know what truck I’ll be driving too, to make sure it’s not a bone-breaker Merc. 
Don’t care how much of the Kelsa shop has been bolted to it.
Do we really need anti-kangaroo bull bars as they look absolutely ridiculous, without sounding pedantic, if you’re a pedestrian and got hit by all that metal tat , you’re getting more than a headache?
And some drivers pay to pimp up their ride and don’t own it.
DCPCFML:
Unless the hourly rate starts with a 2, I’d want to know what truck I’ll be driving too, to make sure it’s not a bone-breaker Merc.Don’t care how much of the Kelsa shop has been bolted to it.
If transport companies think that bolting a load of ironmongery to the front of the truck is going to solve the current situation, then they really are thicker than we all think. Current situation is about pay & conditions. I’m one of the thousands of HGV drivers who’ve left. I’ve gone back to a office job from driving, yes less money and even more of a gap now, but quality of life far better. 37 hours pw working from home as opposed to 58 hours pw getting up at 04:15 every morning. My choice, money is tempting now, but how long will it last?
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Hopefully the young lady who was interviewed has been a victim of poor journalism.
No way is a question of truck or bling the first question which is always hours and salary.
All the years i’ve been doing this job there have been all flash no cash operators, and seemingly a never ending supply of drivers willing to work for them, its nothing new.
Money is very important but it has to be balanced against hours and days required and type of work, not forgetting benefits ie pension scheme and all necessary ex’s like DCPC and medicals paid.
I like a decent motor with an engine up to the job and some interesting work, fleet spec doesn’t bother me as no intention of ever spending another night out in one, but i draw the line at vehicles with auto gearboxes where manual override has been programmed out…unless it’s paying ridiculously good money in which case we’ll overlook the issue… 
, and i also will not deliver to RDC’s, until such time as they stop corralling drivers like cattle and an atmosphere of mutual respect returns.
I guess if your a youngster starting out , maybe always had a interest / love of lorries more so than seeing it as a job you would be interested in the lorry / extras it may have , and why not , good luck to them , probably still living at home so money not that important
But most normal people’s first question would be do you abandon you’re drivers in lay-bys on a fri night ?
I always ask what truck…
Load of money will i be getting. 
Try living in a Volvo FL 10 aka Wendy Houses tramping around Europe for weeks on end, to get dressed , you have to do that outside, no room inside if you are tall .
The same for the Renault Premium but both trucks pull like trains and for badge snobs , the Premium is an underrated good earner for the owner and fits in narrow entrances like farms and building sites .
‘‘Is this the question knobheads ask’’… would be a better title,.and sadly I reckon the answer to that is ‘‘YES’’. 
Sure, it’s great to drive a top notch on top of the job motor, that looks nice with all the right gear on (without hitting the bad taste barrier of course,.as many do) accompanied with a good or excellent rate of pay and t.s & c.s…
But would it be an either/or situation,■■
Not for anybody with a bit of sense no.
Especially if it involved trading holidays or Sudays for all that crap like some imbeciles do.
People drive trucks for a living for all sorts of reasons, big boys toys etc, So there will be those that will be willing to get their hands on a nice blinged up scania or similar to play in for low wages, Nothing new here. I don’t think it right to criticise or take the ■■■■ out of these sorts. Its their thing and they like it. Personally so long as a truck is legal, I will drive it if the money is right.
Yorkshire Tramper:
So there will be those that will be willing to get their hands on a nice blinged up scania or similar to play in for low wages, Nothing new here. I don’t think it right to criticise or take the ■■■■ out of these sorts. .
No?
Well I do.
Not sure if true or if it’s just good old fashioned drivercrap, but it was reported that one of the Chiefs at our place commented after looking out of his office window one day…‘We must be paying these guys too much if they can afford to put all that expensive kit on our trucks’’
So where does that leave the likes of me and many others with more sense?
I was talking to an operator I know one Sunday in a pub/restaurant, who was taking the ■■■■ out of two of his drivers (and rightly so) who had run out Sunday to pay for all the crsp he had bought for the truck he drove.
How would you feel if your Mrs came home one day and said, I’m thinking of buying an executive style 1000 quid chair for my office, .or summet else totally unnecessary but that should be funded by her boss.
Or I’m applying for a new job, a lot lower wages, but ■■■■ the mortgage it has air con.
,.I think if it was my Mrs my boot would be heading at high speed towards her arse (metaphorically speaking, I ain’t a wife beater )
robroy:
No?
Well I do.
Not sure if true or if it’s just good old fashioned drivercrap, but it was reported that one of the Chiefs at our place commented after looking out of his office window one day…‘We must be paying these guys too much if they can afford to put all that expensive kit on our trucks’’
So where does that leave the likes of me and many others with more sense? )
Well personally I dont agree with it either but my point is whatever floats their boat. If they want to shell out money for something that isnt theirs then who can say they are wrong. /if it makes them feel better, I am not into trucks being blinged up myself and find truck shows a bit wierd but plenty seem to go to them. I just live and let live.
Yorkshire Tramper:
robroy:
No?
Well I do.
Not sure if true or if it’s just good old fashioned drivercrap, but it was reported that one of the Chiefs at our place commented after looking out of his office window one day…‘We must be paying these guys too much if they can afford to put all that expensive kit on our trucks’’
So where does that leave the likes of me and many others with more sense? )Well personally I dont agree with it either but my point is whatever floats their boat. If they want to shell out money for something that isnt theirs then who can say they are wrong. /if it makes them feel better, I am not into trucks being blinged up myself and find truck shows a bit wierd but plenty seem to go to them. I just live and let live.
You miss my point, 2 examples of points of view from 1 operator and one transport manager.
I’m assuming those views are shared by many more, so it can only have negative effects on peopke like you and me broadly speaking.
My questions would be can you buy a British lorry and not a cheap import 
robroy:
You miss my point, 2 examples of points of view from 1 operator and one transport manager.
I’m assuming those views are shared by many more, so it can only have negative effects on peopke like you and me broadly speaking.
Oh yes don’t get me wrong here, not in defence of it but some people have different views. What appears odd to us is quite normal to them. It is not for us to impose our views onto them and vice versa. I don’t think it has any negative affect on me as I keep my unit ■■■■ and span inside and the firm pays on snap for us to wash the trucks at a truck wash. I draw the at line putting lights and leather trims into it. I also find it really tacky people putting their names on lighting boards in the cab rear and hate number plates in the window with silly names on equally the same. That is my opinion only.
On asking an employer he told me % pay blah blah Saturday morning wash truck and polish inside and out it’s included in % , and it’s a long nose old school Pete and trailer had disc brakes for my safety , seemed a bit miffed when I asked how do I know what the rate was so I know the % , I just turned and walked away
lol mine is: “I’m not obliged to do overtime, am I?”.
If they say no, I usually take a punt on them.
Don’t be ridiculous. Every self respecting driver’s first question is whether the company offers a cycle to work scheme. I walked out on ES because they didn’t have one.
When you go for an interview you already know what the hourly rate is. You probably know what kind of work they do too. The interview starts with the TM rambling on about how important drivers are and that they don’t tolerate any law-breaking etc.
By the time they get to the bit where they ask you have you any questions, there’s not much left to say apart from questions about the truck.
Of course, there is the other kind of interview where they take a quick look at your cards and chuck you a bunch of keys and paperwork.