I grew up travelling the UK on the engine cover of my dads ‘old Atki’, ye i’m getting on a bit, 43, and have decided to follow in his footsteps and am taking my LGV C+E in a couple of weeks. I am tring to get a job, any job, but everyone wants experience, how are you supposed to gain it when you can’t get a break?
I old enough and ugly enough to know i’m not about to fall into fantastic job straight off but i’m running out of ideas. If anyone wants ADR I would be happy to pay for the certs myself but no luck thus far.
People have been asking this question for as long as I can remember. The bizarre thing is that hauliers don’t mean “two years experience”, they simply mean you need to have held a full licence for two years, even if you have never once driven a truck in that time. It is a condition of the insurance companies.
Just for you, I texted my ex-boss to ask him what the difference in cost is and his answer was “The insurance shouldn’t be any extra but the excess would be £2500-£3500 as opposed to £500 4a experienced driver”. Perhaps you could offer to indemnify any excess (then clear off sharpish if you have a smash )
My mate got a job with BOC when he was just through his test and he said they seem to like new drivers as they can train them in their ways before they pick up bad habits elsewhere.
TheHopester:
I grew up travelling the UK on the engine cover of my dads ‘old Atki’, ye i’m getting on a bit, 43, and have decided to follow in his footsteps and am taking my LGV C+E in a couple of weeks. I am tring to get a job, any job, but everyone wants experience, how are you supposed to gain it when you can’t get a break?
I old enough and ugly enough to know i’m not about to fall into fantastic job straight off but i’m running out of ideas. If anyone wants ADR I would be happy to pay for the certs myself but no luck thus far.
ANY IDEAS■■?
I am in the same boat mate, i feel like i have been banging my head against a brick wall since i passed my C+E test in october. All i have been getting is “sorry, we cant do nothing for you as you dont have any experience” or “sorry we need drivers with 2 years experience” or just not gettin phone calls returned when they say they will.
i moved to yorkshire from london in october and left a decent job, when i moved. all anyone wants when they have passed is for someone to give them a chance. i would even be willin to work for a couple of days for free to show i can do the job if it come to it. it shouldnt have to come to that but i would do whatever it takes now, FRUSTRATED aint the word GRRRRRRR
It’s not impossible to get a job. I’m 22 and driving an artic. Passed when I was 21, went on a rigid for a company for about 6 months occaisionaly doin a run here and there in an artic. I Then left and went on agency and got experience on fridges, cages, pallets, and double deckers. Started my new full time job last week and enjoying it. Age and inexperience was and still is against me but I managed to get a full time job (twice) good luck mate
I have said many times before, if your looking for a start, do a search of your local bulk hauliers, its not for the faint hearted, but its relatively easy work, just a bit dirty this time of year, but most are willing to take on new drivers
Yet there is supposed to be a 25000 man driver shortage. Not in this bloody country! Plus this time of year not many people are taking on.
Its a catch 22 situation, but there are ways around it, there must be or none of us would be on this site cause we wouldnt be driving. I took a job doing multi-drop just to get that experience, stuck it all of three months and then got a job on bulk tankers, wouldn`t get me doing anyfhing else.
dowahdiddyman:
Yet there is supposed to be a 25000 man driver shortage.
Even if that were true it would be a shortage of experienced drivers, which won’t help the OP too much. even if a company is short of drivers they may still not take on an inexperienced driver.
If the OP has not already laid out the money, my advice would be not to waste it on LGV lessons and test. Things may be better in a few years time, nobody knows, but for now it would be cheaper for him to stay indoors and throw £20 notes out of the window.
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good luck mate