1FLEETRENEGADE:
Total ban on driver agency’s and all the bull that goes with them ■■?
+1^^^ All agencies are the same…!!!
Twinny:
Out of curiosity, do you take on recently qualified drivers or drivers with little experience or do you want the minimum 2 yr experience BS that all the other agencies ask for.
Why is it bs? Do you think you know it all the day after passing your test? Do you not think you are going to improve with experience?
Bungle666:
Im on a leeds agency and they’re pretty good, now ive been on with them for a while the last minute jobs are ending, and im notified WELL in advance of workfor example i know where and who im working for at 6am Monday morning, as well as knowing there is a VERY good chance ill be in there all week!
the only thing i dislike is the umbrella pay… £40 seems to have magically disappeared out of my wages this week, I reckon maybe £20 is tax… but the rest GOD KNOWS! I shall be ringing them on monday to find out!
I can handle last minute work, and even cancellations if ive been left long enough to find another job, afterall its the nature of the job! But advance knowledge, regular work and direct PAYE are possibly the most important things!
B…
Once you volunteer forty sheets of your hard earned away each week, too right you’ll find yourself climbing up the pecking order… Some of the work will indeed be scheduled leave cover and block bookings of 40 hours plus which they need to give you so they can hide their umbrella deductions behind a wall of incorrectly-claimed tax rebates… Daytime weekday shifts are more common than nights & weekends because you are spending more overhead money to commute each day for less gross pay, which means it’s easier to offset more to make themselves look good. Best to keep ALL your receipts, because you might get audited halfway through the year and get caught short otherwise. 
Ps. PAYE by nature cannot be “Umbrella”. You cannot offset one against the other. Umbrella is a form of self-employed where the umbrella company will deduct taxes as you go (money which they keep for the rest of the tax year) which I have previously labelled “Pseudo PAYE” and is yet another of their fiddles - you’ve loaned them your entire tax bill upto a year in advance for 0% interest. 
RiverDrive:
Since I am quite young I have a lot of respect for my drivers as they are a lot older than me and I have always learnt to respect my elders. I don’t treat my drivers unfairly and if they contact me saying is there any work etc I will be completely honest to them and if there isn’t work I will tell them that. At the end of the day these guys are doing me a favour and I’m doing my clients a favour but without these drivers that favour can not be achieved.In terms of rates I do not pay £8.50 for an artic driver I will pay them up to £12 p/h. I pay my drivers what I believe is fair and an acceptable rate for the work ethnic they have put in. If one of my drivers has not done a good job and i get a report back from my clients saying so I will most unlikely use him again simple because I want the best. I’m happy to reward my best drivers with bonuses and incentives
I do not use an umbrella scheme I pay all my drivers directly.
At this moment in time I am trying to stress to drivers that not all agencies are the same and some do offer fantastic opportunities, hence why I’m on a trucking forum. I want to know what you guys want from agencies.
For what shift and day of the week? As you’ve said “up to” then I assume that is your maximum overtime rate 
. Good luck getting any drivers then.
Let me take a guess at the work you’ve got : Arla/Moran, Stobbies (fixed rate), UPS (fixed rate), Asda through Mallinson, to name but a few. ie. all the ■■■■ that no-one wants to do for the buttons that are on offer.
West Yorks is already saturated with agencies so the best thing you can do is pack up your stall so that it’s one less place hacking the rates to the bare bone in order to get the work.
Also, I’m intrigued to know what these “fantastic opportunties” are that you are offering, so let’s hear them.
stevieboy308:
Twinny:
Out of curiosity, do you take on recently qualified drivers or drivers with little experience or do you want the minimum 2 yr experience BS that all the other agencies ask for.Why is it bs? Do you think you know it all the day after passing your test? Do you not think you are going to improve with experience?
No I don’t think I know it all after passing my test, that’s the point you learn to pass a test, if the agencies won’t even take on newly qualified drivers, where are they supposed to go to get the experience.
Twinny:
stevieboy308:
Twinny:
Out of curiosity, do you take on recently qualified drivers or drivers with little experience or do you want the minimum 2 yr experience BS that all the other agencies ask for.Why is it bs? Do you think you know it all the day after passing your test? Do you not think you are going to improve with experience?
No I don’t think I know it all after passing my test, that’s the point you learn to pass a test, if the agencies won’t even take on newly qualified drivers, where are they supposed to go to get the experience.
but why do you think it’s an agency’s obligation to allow you to get that experience?
If an agency can get more that enough drivers on their books with proven track records over at least 2 years, then why do they need to take a chance on someone who hasn’t? What’s in it for them?
RiverDrive:
In terms of rates I do not pay £8.50 for an artic driver I will pay them up to £12 p/h. I pay my drivers what I believe is fair and an acceptable rate for the work ethnic they have put in. If one of my drivers has not done a good job and i get a report back from my clients saying so I will most unlikely use him again simple because I want the best. I’m happy to reward my best drivers with bonuses and incentives.
I doubt youll make a profit paying those rates. Clients are under pressure to cut costs & maximise profits. They are after all a business. So theyll put pressure on you to cut rates, this is before you take into consideration that other agencies will be trying to under cut your rates to get their foot in the door. This puts pressure on you to cut the rates you pay the drivers on your “books” because you as a business also need to make a profit. That’s before you take into consideration that agency drivers are a fickle bunch with lack of loyalty & tend not to hang around if they`re messed around or stood down.
RiverDrive:
I do not use an umbrella scheme I pay all my drivers directly.
That initially sounds great, BUT is that via the standard HMRC PAYE scheme, with you as the employer?
As most agency drivers are paid direct in 1 way or another, many use umbrella schemes, many more submit invoices and do their own accounting as a Ltd company. But all are paid “directly” by the agency. So you may with to elaborate more on this statement
As the employer the standard HMRC PAYE scheme will increase your costs, & decrease your profit putting more pressure on you to find ways to keep competitive, as I doubt the client would be willing to pay higher rates, its the client which dictates the rates, especially if there`s another agency round the corner willing to supply drivers more cheaply.
So this in turn puts pressure on you to cut your costs. which usually means cutting rates you pay drivers
RiverDrive:
I run a driver recruiting agency in Leeds, West Yorkshire. We deal with massive transport and logistic companies in the North East and West Yorkshire such as Port of Tyne and Stobart.I just want some feed back off you guys.
I want to know what you agency drivers want?
Full Time work or just weekends?
Pay/rate?
Shifts?
Contracts?
Bonus Schemes?
Please let me know
thanks
James
Just wants feedback 
More like a free advert 
stevieboy308:
Twinny:
stevieboy308:
Twinny:
Out of curiosity, do you take on recently qualified drivers or drivers with little experience or do you want the minimum 2 yr experience BS that all the other agencies ask for.Why is it bs? Do you think you know it all the day after passing your test? Do you not think you are going to improve with experience?
No I don’t think I know it all after passing my test, that’s the point you learn to pass a test, if the agencies won’t even take on newly qualified drivers, where are they supposed to go to get the experience.
but why do you think it’s an agency’s obligation to allow you to get that experience?
If an agency can get more that enough drivers on their books with proven track records over at least 2 years, then why do they need to take a chance on someone who hasn’t? What’s in it for them?
I don’t think agencies are obligated to take on new drivers, but if not them, then who? As a new driver myself I’ve found it impossible to find a job, agency or otherwise, it sounds to me that by you’re reckoning, new drivers have no place in the industry. If I’m wrong about this I appologise but as you can imagine I do get frustrated when I phone for a job and the magical 2 yr rule is brought out, I asked one agency how I was supposed the get the experience, the answer was a dead tone as the phone was put down.
jacknife:
More like a free advert
My initial thoughts on the OP was that its someone who aspires to run their own agency
peirre:
jacknife:
More like a free advertMy initial thoughts on the OP was that its someone who aspires to run their own agency
My initial thoughts of the OP was that he’s a spammer.
It’s been deleted now, but his first post on these forums was a full blown spam message giving his agency name and phone number ec’t.
He’s on TN to spam and in my opinion his account should have been deleted, or at least posters like this should have their PM and Email disabled to deter others from coming here to spam the forums.
Some kid with big ideas but no knowledge of the industry.
Job Number:
Job Title:
Type:
Location:
Salary: RD0043
Class 1 Driver
Weekly
West Yorkshire
£7-£12
riverdriverecruitment.co.uk/vacancies.html
Mop and bucket money. If the starting rates for C+E start at £7/hr then he has precisely 0 chance of getting any good drivers. All he’ll attract are the dregs of society at those rates.
Twinny:
stevieboy308:
Twinny:
stevieboy308:
Twinny:
Out of curiosity, do you take on recently qualified drivers or drivers with little experience or do you want the minimum 2 yr experience BS that all the other agencies ask for.Why is it bs? Do you think you know it all the day after passing your test? Do you not think you are going to improve with experience?
No I don’t think I know it all after passing my test, that’s the point you learn to pass a test, if the agencies won’t even take on newly qualified drivers, where are they supposed to go to get the experience.
but why do you think it’s an agency’s obligation to allow you to get that experience?
If an agency can get more that enough drivers on their books with proven track records over at least 2 years, then why do they need to take a chance on someone who hasn’t? What’s in it for them?
I don’t think agencies are obligated to take on new drivers, but if not them, then who? As a new driver myself I’ve found it impossible to find a job, agency or otherwise, it sounds to me that by you’re reckoning, new drivers have no place in the industry. If I’m wrong about this I appologise but as you can imagine I do get frustrated when I phone for a job and the magical 2 yr rule is brought out, I asked one agency how I was supposed the get the experience, the answer was a dead tone as the phone was put down.
no one is obligated to take on new drivers.
apology accepted i was a new driver once with no experience, granted it was in a different economic era. but i did my research before parting with my hard earned and had a agency job lined up through the driving instructor once i’d passed my class 1, despite no class 2 exp. it was 340 miles from where i lived though i did 6 weeks in a caravan before returning home and signing up with an agency that paid £1 less ph than the agency who wanted 2 years exp.
did you do any research on the jobs market before spending your money? it’s a bit of a high risk strategy spending money on a hgv licence at the moment, so it’s the chance you take. you don’t have a right to a job.
of course i understand your frustration, but as there are plenty of experienced drivers wanting work then you’re going to have to be very lucky get anywhere by going through the normal process of applying for jobs. i’d be approaching small to medium family type firms asking if you can go out with one of their drivers for a day / week all you need is a driver to ring in sick etc and you’ll be in a truck! or offer to do some yard shunting and although i know i’ll get slated on here i’d be offering to do a weeks work for free. make sure you leave your phone number!
no one is obligated to take on new drivers.
apology accepted i was a new driver once with no experience, granted it was in a different economic era. but i did my research before parting with my hard earned and had a agency job lined up through the driving instructor once i’d passed my class 1, despite no class 2 exp. it was 340 miles from where i lived though i did 6 weeks in a caravan before returning home and signing up with an agency that paid £1 less ph than the agency who wanted 2 years exp.
did you do any research on the jobs market before spending your money? it’s a bit of a high risk strategy spending money on a hgv licence at the moment, so it’s the chance you take. you don’t have a right to a job.
of course i understand your frustration, but as there are plenty of experienced drivers wanting work then you’re going to have to be very lucky get anywhere by going through the normal process of applying for jobs. i’d be approaching small to medium family type firms asking if you can go out with one of their drivers for a day / week all you need is a driver to ring in sick etc and you’ll be in a truck! or offer to do some yard shunting and although i know i’ll get slated on here i’d be offering to do a weeks work for free. make sure you leave your phone number!
[/quote]
I did some research before hand and the job market looked decent, granted I could have done more before spending my cash, thanks for the advice, I shall be putting it to good use over the next week as I have a week off from work so I’ll be knocking on some doors.
Cheers.
No -one should work for free,You could ask if you could accompany a driver to learn about the admin. side of the job.
alamcculloch:
No -one should work for free,You could ask if you could accompany a driver to learn about the admin. side of the job.
Yes because filling in a sheet with start mileage, end mileage and times you arrived and left your drops is really rocket science isn’t it.
alamcculloch:
No -one should work for free,You could ask if you could accompany a driver to learn about the admin. side of the job.
i agree in an ideal world, but the world we live in is not ideal.
ok don’t think of it as working for free, think of it as working for some experience, an extension of the training you’ve paid for.
you’ve got to offer the other bloke something to tip his risk : reward in your favour
Starting up an agency in Leeds paying up to £12 per hour? This is another lie with the agencies. Why won’t they tell you the actual basic rate of pay along with the overtime rate rather than a potential rate that you might earn if you start work at 01.28 on a Sunday morning.
Please fill in the blanks Mr agency and your answers will either have your phone ringing off the hook or the thread will die.
Day rate = £**.** per hour
Overtime after 8 hours = £**.** per hour
Night rate = £**.**
Night overtime after 8 hrs = £**.**
Saturday rate = £**.**
Sunday rate £**.**
Cancellation rate should be 8 hours at basic pay.
Now I already know what your answer is going to be. “all our clients have different rates so we can’t give specific answers”. Well maybe you should try setting a rate so that drivers know whether they are coming or going.
You want to attract the best drivers? well you are seriously going to have to up your game to achieve this. The top drivers are already kept busy and usually by the best payers so you are going to have to offer something very special like a Scania Topliner with frilly tie backs if you are going to tempt them away from their already well paid numbers with agencies whom they have built up a rapport with.
Just for your interest, here is something I copied some time ago, it made me laugh and I think its appropriate.
The agency waffle handbook.
As an agency driver, you will soon learn that they all seem to use the same ■■■■■■■■ lines on a daily basis. This is obviously because upon entering the agency trade each muppet is presented with their own " ■■■■■■■■ booklet" from which they must memorize as many lines as possible in order to pass their assessment.
Now it will do every driver good to be aware of these lines so that they are armed in advance and will never again be fooled by a ■■■■■■■■ line from the agency ■■■■■■■■ booklet.
So here goes, some of the best ■■■■■■■■ lines you will hear along with their definitions.
1, You have been cancelled - We found someone cheaper to do the job.
2, They’ve asked for you by name - We can’t get anybody else to do the job so are blowing smoke up your arse to get you to do it.
3, They’ve pencilled you in for all next week - We’ve not got anything for you but want to make sure you don’t work for anybody else, a phone call on Monday normally results with see number 1.
4, We can’t pay you because you never sent in your signed time sheet - We want to hold on to your money as long as possible even though the law states that we must pay you regardless of presenting a timesheet or not.
5, Its a bit quiet - We’ve been too busy eating donuts all day to bother finding any work.
6, How’s my number one driver? - Designed to blow smoke up your already patronised arse.
7, How’s my star driver? - See number 6.
8, We’ll sort out the shortfall on your wage next week - Damned you for noticing us trying to fleece you again, hopeful you’ll forget by next week.
9, She’s out of the office at the moment, can I get her to call you back? - She’s sat waving her arms in the air shaking her head because she does not want to take your call.
10, We’re just doing our ring rounds to see who is available for work - we are trying to find out where all the work is, if you tell them you are booked already the next question is " oh yeah…where?" so that they can visit the same firm and undercut your agency.
11, Keep your phone switched on mate, we’re due some work in - See number 6.
12, Can you help us out, we’ve been let down by another driver, could you get there as soon as you can? - This bloke keeps blobbing on us but he’s cheaper than you so we keep using him in the hope he will turn up.
13, Are you working tonight? - We’re sniffing to see where the work is and hoping that because you’re such a gobby git you wont be able to hold your P**** and you will reveal everything.
14, Do you fancy a week of days next week? - We haven’t really got any work for you but we need a new way to sniff to see where the work is and thought if we asked this way then it would fool you.
15, I’m just waiting on them getting back to me with a booking for tonight mate, stand by your phone - You will be a skeleton by the time your phone rings, I’m just trying to make sure I’ve got some muppet waiting for me to call if a company rings us.
16, They said they don’t want you anymore - Because you wouldn’t run bent they don’t like it so we’re sending them someone who will.
17, We’re not like all the other agencies - We really are and you should re read number 6.
18, I’ve got a night trunk for you - When you get there you’ll be shunting.
More will come to me soon, to be updated.
Truckbling:
Starting up an agency in Leeds paying up to £12 per hour? This is another lie with the agencies. Why won’t they tell you the actual basic rate of pay along with the overtime rate rather than a potential rate that you might earn if you start work at 01.28 on a Sunday morning.Please fill in the blanks Mr agency and your answers will either have your phone ringing off the hook or the thread will die.
Day rate = £**.** per hour
Overtime after 8 hours = £**.** per hour
Night rate = £**.**
Night overtime after 8 hrs = £**.**
Saturday rate = £**.**
Sunday rate £**.**
Cancellation rate should be 8 hours at basic pay.Now I already know what your answer is going to be. “all our clients have different rates so we can’t give specific answers”. Well maybe you should try setting a rate so that drivers know whether they are coming or going.
You want to attract the best drivers? well you are seriously going to have to up your game to achieve this. The top drivers are already kept busy and usually by the best payers so you are going to have to offer something very special like a Scania Topliner with frilly tie backs if you are going to tempt them away from their already well paid numbers with agencies whom they have built up a rapport with.
Just for your interest, here is something I copied some time ago, it made me laugh and I think its appropriate.
The agency waffle handbook.
As an agency driver, you will soon learn that they all seem to use the same [zb] lines on a daily basis. This is obviously because upon entering the agency trade each muppet is presented with their own " [zb] booklet" from which they must memorize as many lines as possible in order to pass their assessment.
Now it will do every driver good to be aware of these lines so that they are armed in advance and will never again be fooled by a [zb] line from the agency [zb] booklet.
So here goes, some of the best [zb] lines you will hear along with their definitions.
1, You have been cancelled - We found someone cheaper to do the job.
2, They’ve asked for you by name - We can’t get anybody else to do the job so are blowing smoke up your arse to get you to do it.
3, They’ve pencilled you in for all next week - We’ve not got anything for you but want to make sure you don’t work for anybody else, a phone call on Monday normally results with see number 1.
4, We can’t pay you because you never sent in your signed time sheet - We want to hold on to your money as long as possible even though the law states that we must pay you regardless of presenting a timesheet or not.
5, Its a bit quiet - We’ve been too busy eating donuts all day to bother finding any work.
6, How’s my number one driver? - Designed to blow smoke up your already patronised arse.
7, How’s my star driver? - See number 6.
8, We’ll sort out the shortfall on your wage next week - Damned you for noticing us trying to fleece you again, hopeful you’ll forget by next week.
9, She’s out of the office at the moment, can I get her to call you back? - She’s sat waving her arms in the air shaking her head because she does not want to take your call.
10, We’re just doing our ring rounds to see who is available for work - we are trying to find out where all the work is, if you tell them you are booked already the next question is " oh yeah…where?" so that they can visit the same firm and undercut your agency.
11, Keep your phone switched on mate, we’re due some work in - See number 6.
12, Can you help us out, we’ve been let down by another driver, could you get there as soon as you can? - This bloke keeps blobbing on us but he’s cheaper than you so we keep using him in the hope he will turn up.
13, Are you working tonight? - We’re sniffing to see where the work is and hoping that because you’re such a gobby git you wont be able to hold your P**** and you will reveal everything.
14, Do you fancy a week of days next week? - We haven’t really got any work for you but we need a new way to sniff to see where the work is and thought if we asked this way then it would fool you.
15, I’m just waiting on them getting back to me with a booking for tonight mate, stand by your phone - You will be a skeleton by the time your phone rings, I’m just trying to make sure I’ve got some muppet waiting for me to call if a company rings us.
16, They said they don’t want you anymore - Because you wouldn’t run bent they don’t like it so we’re sending them someone who will.
17, We’re not like all the other agencies - We really are and you should re read number 6.
18, I’ve got a night trunk for you - When you get there you’ll be shunting.
More will come to me soon, to be updated.
Agency waffle handbook - love it - pure class
If you have a brand new shiny licence you wont necessarily know how to open the curtains on a curtainsider.The buckles are usually straight forward but you have to lift up the pole and walk it back,easy I know but put your self in the position of a guy who has never done it before.How about skips and tippers?They are not standard so cant really give advice on here.Its been said on the forum in the past that there is not the camaraderie among drivers,if you ask for help or advice the guy is more likely to laugh at you or film your misfortune then post it up on trucknet (other forums are available).