Hello to all,
i am a newbie in Luton and have been struggling to find a employer or agency to take me on for my first job.
I passed my class 2 nearly 8 weeks ago after spending all of my families savings and have been on the internet and phones daily to get myself on the road.
I was wondering if anybody knows of anyone who would give me a chance.
Many thanks and fingers crossed.
Cande 1982
What you are experiencing is not unusual for a newbie - many other posts on here like yours
Did you research your local job market for newbies before you spent the money ?
Internet and phone wont do it. You need to go and physically knock on doors. Have a brief CV with you. You want to see either the HR manager or Transport Manager. You may well have to make an appointment to go back. But persist. Just don’t take NO for an answer. Make sure you have all the normal protective clothing in your car and dont promise anyone at home that you’ll be home that night. Dress ready for work (clean, smart but not suited and booted).
Track down the smaller hauliers; they sometimes have a more flexible aproach to hiring and firing. Plan your door knocking route. Keep a record of where you’ve been, who you saw, and briefly, what the conversation was. There should ALWAYS be a progress plan. (eg visit again next Wednesday after 1100. Trans manager at dentist 0930 - ask him how it went).
What I am describing is the basis of a sales programme. This is what you need as the product you are selling is YOU.
Don’t give up. Much as you will find many threads similar to yours, you will find loads telling us that it can be done.
All the best, Pete 
I got my LGV licence in 1991, and few years ago, it took my 2 years to find work, and i have driven all over the UK and Europe, that shows how bad it is out there at the moment, i rang/faxed/emailed transport firms and managers, and they all ignored me and i received no replies to all my hard effort and homework in finding firms.
All i can say, is to find some farmers that are in the haulage industry, for hay/straw/machinery or tractor transport, even a farmer will need a day off or get ill and call you in to cover.
Then there is the equine industry, moving horses, all over Europe and the Uk,do you know anyone with some stables and taking their horses for a show/event in Portugal.
You can place an advert for free in one of the truck magazines, then they call you.
Leave your printed up business cards in ferry ports and truckstops/cafes.
With the experience thing, it may pay to say a few white lies.
Look in the free mags, like Trade-It, there are driving jobs there, try Eures website and Gumtree, and Rapido too.
Sift through the local papers, with luck a firm has placed an advert, but do no delay in responding, there will be a long list of applicants.
Removal firms seem to have drivers that stay with them for years and years, it is hard graft lifting, some go all over Europe and beyond that.Have a look for one man band operators and owner drivers, even if it washing the lorry saturday mornings, you have a foot in the door.
Try PW Gates in Welwyn mate. He is pretty good at giving new blokes a start .
Good luck
Peter Smythe:
Internet and phone wont do it. You need to go and physically knock on doors.
+1
I got my LGV licence in 1991, and few years ago, it took my 2 years to find work, and i have driven all over the UK and Europe, that shows how bad it is out there at the moment, i rang/faxed/emailed transport firms and managers, and they all ignored me and i received no replies to all my hard effort and homework in finding firms
Internet and phone wont do it. You need to go and physically knock on doors.
Try PW Gates in Welwyn mate. He is pretty good at giving new blokes a start .
How you deal with this bit of valuable info could make all the difference. Ring up and you’ll possibly get fobbed off. Email will be ignored. OR get your gear together and go bang on his door. And if he’s busy, wait. Don’t leave until you’ve seen the man who hires and fires.
Determination is the only way.
Pete
Peter Smythe:
Try PW Gates in Welwyn mate. He is pretty good at giving new blokes a start .
How you deal with this bit of valuable info could make all the difference. Ring up and you’ll possibly get fobbed off. Email will be ignored. OR get your gear together and go bang on his door. And if he’s busy, wait. Don’t leave until you’ve seen the man who hires and fires.
Determination is the only way.
Pete
I can give you the blokes phone number who deals with hiring and firing if you like
A few people/companies I’ve worked for or worked casual or just aware of are -
FR Cawleys
1 Covent Garden Close Luton LU4 8QB
07971 104203
Pete Simpson used to be in charge but I think it’s a guy called Kevin now.
skips,roll ons, dustcarts, rear end loaders, bulkers, tippers.
Ashfield Trailer Services
Luton Cold Store
Skimpot Road
Luton
Bedfordshire LU4 0JD
01582 494941
Ron & Gene Ashfield
Fresh & frozen Fridges & tautliners used to run 4 wheelers as well as artics.
Try the local council Bins, I think they run out of Kingsway, Luton.
Mortimers Logistics
Ground Floor / Unit A / Chiltern Pk Industrial Estate
Boscombe Road
Dunstable
Bedfordshire LU5 4LT
01582 471155
They are always in the local press looking for casual drivers, not sure what the haul but probably something to do with print/newspapers/magazines etc.
Glen Transport Services. Midway Depot, Stanbridge Road. Leighton Buzzard. Bedfordshire. LU7 9HR. Tel - 01525 851890 or 01525 852415
Glen & Wayne.
used to do the newspapers out of wapping & the isle of dogs, not sure what they do now, think it’s general haulage.
Mini Clipper,Leighton Industrial Billington Rd, Estate Leighton Industrial Park, Leighton Buzzard LU7 4AJ
01525 244700
Mick Masters. used to be in charge.
Palletline work & general haulage.
Daily Nationwide Distribution. Leighton Buzzard; Tel: 01525 370888
don’t know them but they do palletline type deliveries.
or you could even try the company I work for (they were looking for drivers a couple of weeks ago)
WH Barleys
Old Wolverton Rd
Old Wolverton
Milton Keynes
01908 227 222
Don Ruby/Transport Manager
I know it’s Milton Keynes but it’s a possibility.
Good luck with your search.
PS- if you get a position with any of the above just buy me a pint 
very good advice you’ve been given.
meeting the boss face to face is by far the best way. but you need to do a bit of homework.
a few minutes Googleing the company can pay off, the more you know about the business the more little facts you can drop in “you had a turnover of 3.5 million last fiscal year, of which 2.3 million was profit” “I like to be part of a team, and from what I read on spludge.com you are an investor in people” blah blah, you get the point, BUT DON’T GO TOO FAR! just enough to make you interesting and make you stand out.
linkdin for example gives you personal information on the guy who is interviewing you, so do other sites. a bit of flattery never goes amiss
a friend gave me a tip once: when somebody is interviewing you, they are really looking for someone who has their own personality traits. SUBTLY! feed back to them what they show to you. and never appear desperate, confident and keen but never desperate!
remember that only a small part of a driver’s job is driving. security, customer service, initiative, organized…
a driver with 10 years experience is no good if he’s going to damage goods, upset clients and perform every skive in the book while being on the phone every 10 mins with problems. they want the guy who will make their job easier
hope this helps, it works for me! better get off to work now or I will be practising what I preach 
Cande 1982:
Hello to all,
i am a newbie in Luton and have been struggling to find a employer or agency to take me on for my first job.
I passed my class 2 nearly 8 weeks ago after spending all of my families savings and have been on the internet and phones daily to get myself on the road.
I was wondering if anybody knows of anyone who would give me a chance.
Many thanks and fingers crossed.
Cande 1982
Thats right lay in at home watch jeremy kyle make couple calls and look on internet the jobs will come knocking your door really get out there show people your serious
Another option is to find a haulier who does not follow all the rules to the letter, lets say for now, that their paper work may not be 100%.
I have worked for rogue operators that paid on time every time, and got some good experience,just an idea.
jbaz73:
a driver with 10 years experience is no good if he’s going to damage goods, upset clients and perform every skive in the book while being on the phone every 10 mins with problems. they want the guy who will make their job easier
+1. Are you saying agencies won’t sign you up, or do they just saying they won’t have work for you? I’d say sign up with them anyway, if they let you, and then be available for anything. Keep your 'phone with you all the time and be prepared to drive a van or 7.5 tonner if that’s what they want. Do a good job doing that and they are much more likely to give you a job driving a truck. If they ring on a sunday night wanting you to work there and then, go do it. Transport works like this; the trucks must be working otherwise they lose money. If someone goes sick and all they can find to drive a vehicle is an inexperienced agency driver, then that’s who is going to get the work. Having the ‘do anything’ attitude worked for me and, despite being told it wouldn’t happen, through agencies I was driving cat C within a month of passing my test, and driving artics the week after passing C+E.
There must be plenty of firms that are in the pallet network doing multi drop work, it is narrow lanes and farms and clients that say the other driver always humps 1200 kg`s of horse food pellets or compost down a shingle/gravel driveway on a pump truck, and they will say just pop it round the back of the stable/yard/mansion house.
If given a phone number, then it involves phoning the farmer who is very conveniently out at the market all day when he knows you have ton bags of fertilser, and he will have a bad back and will not help out.
Keep in there mate it took me 6 months to land my first job and I was sign on with 6 differant agencies it will happen dont give up is the key here and sell yourself at every opportunity im now working full time as a class 2 driver