robbo863:
What about maintenance costs, it must be killing you bulk guys
Maintenance costs are probably higher than those trundling up and down motorways all day long but personally even with the relatively old tackle I’m running I wouldn’t say it is killing me.
Paul
Ive looked in to this, as ive been thinking of being a OD for years, however im having trouble understanding the rates concerning the fuel bonus. Can any one enlighten me? they ( maritime) wanted £48k for a 08 xf and would provide me with work. However im not sure whether to do container work or general haulage with a curtainsider. What would be a reasonable per mile. ive been working out my current employers rates at £1.50 per mile however he did a job southend to witney at £2.59 per mile !!
Any help would be gratefull
Chris
bee chris:
Ive looked in to this, as ive been thinking of being a OD for years, however im having trouble understanding the rates concerning the fuel bonus. Can any one enlighten me? they ( maritime) wanted £48k for a 08 xf and would provide me with work. However im not sure whether to do container work or general haulage with a curtainsider. What would be a reasonable per mile. ive been working out my current employers rates at £1.50 per mile however he did a job southend to witney at £2.59 per mile !!
Any help would be gratefull
Chris
Do not buy a truck from Maritime, they are way overpriced!!!
Can get the same truck for about £7000 cheaper from main dealers!!!
Jesus H Christ, there’s a 10 reg XF105 Super Space here for virtually the same money
trucks.autotrader.co.uk/used-tru … 74142e1677
and an 08 reg Space Cab here for £19,750.
trucks.autotrader.co.uk/used-tru … c0f2fc26bb
I’m sure Maritime give a good warranty and clean the truck up a bit but that’s still way over the top.
Harry Monk:
Jesus H Christ, there’s a 10 reg XF105 Super Space here for virtually the same moneytrucks.autotrader.co.uk/used-tru … 74142e1677
and an 08 reg Space Cab here for £19,750.
trucks.autotrader.co.uk/used-tru … c0f2fc26bb
I’m sure Maritime give a good warranty and clean the truck up a bit but that’s still way over the top.
Thanks for the advice, 
An ex employer bought an XF from maritime, lovely motor to look at and drive BUT…
Just make sure it’s service history is correct and accurate!
He nearly got stung by them over shoddy work that hadn’t been put on the Daf central computer system.
most likely be a good idea not to buy from maritime and source a truck else wear, is you can save as much a £20k, why buy one truck for £48k when you can buy two for £40k and double the work / earnings for you and your business ?!
I don’t know if it’s true or just driver BS but I was once told that Maritime get such a big discount for buying in bulk that they sell the trucks at four years old for the same price as they paid for them new.
Harry Monk:
I don’t know if it’s true or just driver BS but I was once told that Maritime get such a big discount for buying in bulk that they sell the trucks at four years old for the same price as they paid for them new.
i heard the same from a driver who used to work for them as a employee, he told me that they would sell the truck while you were in it and as above
bee chris:
Harry Monk:
I don’t know if it’s true or just driver BS but I was once told that Maritime get such a big discount for buying in bulk that they sell the trucks at four years old for the same price as they paid for them new.i heard the same from a driver who used to work for them as a employee, he told me that they would sell the truck while you were in it and as above
drivers have often had a phonecall from the office requesting their return to the depot as the truck has been sold
i was parked for a few hours in Tilbury depot a few years ago, i watched the signwriter put the livery on a brand new truck in the yard, o had a kip for a couple of hours, and the signwriter was there removing all the livery he had just put on the truck, as it had been sold, it had never even pulled a trailer and they sold it
at one time, they were selling their own skeletal trailers, i enquired about one in 2007, it was described as ‘brand new’ when in fact, it was used, when i asked him where these ‘brand new’ trailers were, he couldn’t answer, then he claimed they were ‘brand new 2006’ trailers, basically 12 months old 
when i eventually got a price out of him, he wanted £12,900 for a 12 month old Dennison skelly
i bought a brand new direct off the production line from the factory for £12,200 for exactly the same spec 
a friend of mine who phoned him a few days later was told they were £13,900 for the same trailer
Harry Monk:
I don’t know if it’s true or just driver BS but I was once told that Maritime get such a big discount for buying in bulk that they sell the trucks at four years old for the same price as they paid for them new.
This is the same for hanbury riverside as well!
so maritime have expensive second trucks and poor rates for subbies, how come i see others pulling their trailers ( different unit) ■■ must be bearly breaking even or at a loss.
ive been looking into going alone with my own unit, it just seems from what i hear from this forum that the rates are not there 
Containers and ferry trailers are generally considered to be the lowest-paid sub-contracting, you could look for something that paid a bit more than that though. When you say you are thinking of putting a truck on the road, how realistic is that idea?
Harry Monk:
Containers and ferry trailers are generally considered to be the lowest-paid sub-contracting, you could look for something that paid a bit more than that though. When you say you are thinking of putting a truck on the road, how realistic is that idea?
im doing research with the help of you guy and girls, ive looked at the price of trucks and doing my DCPC and nat/inter CPC, there is a yard near me that allows you to park ur unit and trl up for a fee. Im considering curtainsiders or fridge work. Im going to do my Dcpc and CPC first, and go from there really. Any pointers Harry Monk, as i know u have been though the process.
Well, I can have a go but I wouldn’t hold myself up as an expert. What kind of experience do you have as an employed driver, how long have you been driving etc, do you have access to a substantial amount of funding, that sort of thing?
Harry Monk:
Well, I can have a go but I wouldn’t hold myself up as an expert. What kind of experience do you have as an employed driver, how long have you been driving etc, do you have access to a substantial amount of funding, that sort of thing?
Ive been driving since 1998 ( 14 years) i started in germany as a heavy haulage army driver, ive been driving commercially since 2001. ive worked on containers, curtainsiders, double deckers and lately fridges. ive got limited flat bed work. ive priced up the cpc nat/inter for £1k, im doing to do my DCPC and cpc before xmas.
Ive not got a lot of funding at the mo, im saving as much as i can, ive seen a nice daf 55 plate for £9k and a 4m curtainersider for £4k. ive got pently of contacts tho old employers. i would like to start in sept 13 however it all depends on the TC im looking at having about £10-14 k for when i contact a TC about a o licence.
If you are thinking about doing traction, you won’t need a trailer as you normally are supplied with one by the company you sub-contract to, usually for a weekly rental fee. You’ll need to maintain a minimum of £7,700 in your bank account at all times and the TC will require your second month’s trading figures to ensure you have met this.
You will also need to finance everything until your first payment comes in, and this will probably not be for two months after you start unless you can get weekly payment, although rates for this aren’t normally very good.
I think you would struggle to get going with £10-14,000, the O Licence alone will be £1,000 by the time you’ve paid for the newspaper advert and fuel will be costing £1,200+ a week, but I may be wrong.
In terms of who to work for, I’d say the first rule is to ensure they are 100% financially sound and have a reputation for paying on time, every time.
Harry Monk:
Jesus H Christ, there’s a 10 reg XF105 Super Space here for virtually the same money
XF105.510, Lovely motor 
Where’s my cheque book?
Harry Monk:
I’d be interested to know what a truck could earn over a busy five-day week on containers. Anyone got an idea of the top line?
Hello fellow trucker .iam a owner driver and all i can say to you is that if a company is constantly advertising for owner drivers then that is a story in itself be very carefull,my tip to you is if an owner driver is working for someone and that company doesnt advertise that tells you another story.i put my 1st truck on the rd last year and my 2nd truck goes on the rd this monday.stay well clear of european do plenty of home work this is not easy.bare this in mind if a company pays you 1.50 per mile and your stuck in bad traffic for 2hrs this is you running at a loss.most companys pay aa auto route or in other terms as the crow flies poi to poi and this can result in lost mileage ,the way forward is you are the owner driver you tell them your rates or nigociate a job rate dont be dictated by what they want to pay you.containers well all i can say the big boys take all the money out of the job and give you the scraps off the table too much waiting around on collection and delivery,then you have adverse weather conditions closeing the docks due to high winds,youve only to ■■■■ loud at felixstowe and everything stops,good luck.
bee chris:
so maritime have expensive second trucks and poor rates for subbies, how come i see others pulling their trailers ( different unit) ■■ must be bearly breaking even or at a loss.
ive been looking into going alone with my own unit, it just seems from what i hear from this forum that the rates are not there
Don’t let this forum put you off. Ring around, and see what rates are on offer, do your sums and see if its worthwhile or not. If anyone is on a good contract, they are not going to give anything away. I get fed up with people being so negative. People love to tell you theres no money in something, even if there is - The less people there are doing the job, the more work there is for the ones that do it. Supply and demand. Go and find out from the horses mouth.