I have just had the shortest day ever at work I think. Took a load from Enfield to West Thurrock this morning. Got to the site at 7:30am Left the yard at around 8am … tipped in West Thurrock and was back in Enfield at 11:30am. Job done, day done. Full day paid … One of the joys of being on agency 
Anybody else had a nice result like that?
A few years ago I was doing a bit on agency for a local bakery…
Turned up at 2pm, at Thornaby jumped in truck , was at the cake factory at St Hilda’s Middlesbrough by 2.30pm, was told load was cancelled back to Thornaby stood down, and in the public bar of the Navigation Inn by 3.15.
best thing is I was booked to do the cake factory run to Wakefield then back to Thornaby and another Wakefield direct from Thornaby, was booked as a 10 hour minimum night shift (Time and a half + £1 hour unsocial hours rate) and thats what they paid 
I once went to work (nights) to be told that the run would have to be cancelled as the trailer wouldn’t be loaded until the following day, I left the yard half an hour later and was paid 8 hours.
As you say, one of the joys of being an agency driver
Got to Dairy Crest at 11 am sat in coffee room till 3pm chatting too the other 3 drivers doing the same then got sent home, full days pay at time and a half. Could do with a few days like that now.
i was on agency for tnt in total i did 19 hours in the whole week , wife told me to pack it in and get a proper job
The 1st 8hrs pay is ok, and getting it for working less than 8 is a bonus, but its hardly rich pickings is it. but its the hours worked/paid beyond 8hrs that is the cream on the milk your after,
I did 7.5hrs today, and that inc a 45 break, and still got 8hrs
that should about cover the effort of getting out of bed, and the fuel used for getting to the yard & back
At the moment I’m working 4 days a week on a contract. 1230 start, taking ONE load from Leamington Spa to Gloucester of chilled foods and returning EMPTY. Approx 90 minutes each way, plus between 15m - 1h onsite either end to get loaded/unloaded and back.
Usually home for 4pm.
Paid basic 8 hours a day 
Another nice short day for me again … 6:30am - 11:30am. Whilst at my last drop I was chatting with Class 1 driver, he reckoned that he is averaging 13 hour days if not more … he was a DHL driver on contract.
He seemed to be a bit fed up with the industry at the moment to say the least. It seems to be a general sentiment amongst drivers now, but definitely more so with the class 1 boys.
Ragnarok:
Anybody else had a nice result like that?
Get it regularly. Usually on Friday nights when it is ‘job & knock’.
Guaranteed 8 hours by the agency - rarely more than 4 hours work! Oh, and some of Friday night pay goes onto Saturday rate which is time and a half so it works out to about £25 an hour!
I’ve had loads of jobs like that.
I’m agency but don’t work full time, i do other things as well.
Short trips are great when you don’t want to work the full day.
Had AAH from Glasgow to ■■■■■■■■■■■ the Co-Op, was really lucky for once Co-Op was empty straight in and tipped. About 3hrs
Others AAH Glasgow to Asda in Grangemouth again straight in and tipped.
Can’t remember times but maybe 4hours max.
Others done a CityLink started at pm Glasgow across to Dumfermline, tipped straight away back to CityLink finished.
Worked for a company delivering steel, it was job and finish, started in Glasgow two drops in Ayrshire one in East End of Glasgow 8am start finished by mid day.
Those were mostly occasional or one off’s never really regular tho.
Trunk wise used to regularly get offered a run from Bellshill to Penrith, used to take it because it was so easy. Could do it in the 4hrs 30mins.
Regular quick runs, used to do class 2’s for AAH years ago. Some of their runs were very easy. Local glasgow shops or lanarkshire 8am start fnished by midday.
Worked for them basically full time as agency was great in the summer because they would maybe give you two short runs i.e. 4hrs a week. Then maybe two long ones like multidrop down the Lake District or up in Aberdeen where you could max out your hours get some OT and maybe a mid sized run like Edinburgh and the borders maybe going to 9-10hours.
Was a good mixutre.
These days don’t really take these trips because i moved house and a bit further away from the work in Glasgow. I tend to try and only go for shifts were i knnow they are going to be at least 10 hours to make it worth my while because of traveling expenses. Supermarket i’m with just now pretty good, shifts are at least 10hrs but can easilly max them out to 15 hours three times a week.
had one a few weeks back. left the house at 0920, got in the car drove to warehouse, arrived there at 0927, spoke to supervisor at 0928 and got told job was cancelled, had my timesheet signed and got back in the car at 0929 and was home again by 0937. not bad for 8 hours pay at £15 an hour (sunday).
and then to top it all off got another phone call from another agency at about 1100 to do milk run to slough and back, “we’ll pay you 8 hours at £18 an hour if you take it, were stuck!” ok then said I.
that has got to be my best day yet! i walked away with just shy of £200 for about 5 1/2 hours work.(£36 an hour)…rock star wages, not quite, but better than the normal cack you get from the agency!
Ragnarok:
I have just had the shortest day ever at work I think. Took a load from Enfield to West Thurrock this morning. Got to the site at 7:30am Left the yard at around 8am … tipped in West Thurrock and was back in Enfield at 11:30am. Job done, day done. Full day paid … One of the joys of being on agencyAnybody else had a nice result like that?
Yeah five days this week one run per day maximum 9 hours and 4 7 hour shifts…and they said containers would take some getting used to
tachograph:
I once went to work (nights) to be told that the run would have to be cancelled as the trailer wouldn’t be loaded until the following day, I left the yard half an hour later and was paid 8 hours.As you say, one of the joys of being an agency driver
I had that one Sunday evening. Turns up at 7pm - no motor. Rings up and company forgot to cancel the booking with the agency. 8hrs - double time. Thankyou.