Cheers Thugz I suppose it’s time for me to stop being a mugz. 
Yes it is about time I “caught myself on” I’m the fill in driver working for a crap wage.
Dont get too stressed as it will be you that has the "heart attack " not them as they say just do your best stay calm ( I know easier said than done
Take each day drop as it comes & yep I have done agency for a bit although I now do van work as was best on offer ( not multi drop though ) I never know where I am going until the phone rings or maybe if lucky know a day before hand
So yep my work is a bit adhock but dont mind as I get paid to go all over this country if yu want to look at it like that
Redrorry:
,how are you managing with different “assignments” and doing new runs where you don’t know the drops. Also have any of the companies put you under delivery pressure, "like our usual driver knows it’s down the little lane off the high street not actually the “high street” like the postcode/address says. Add this example for most of the drops you get the picture.
I’ve just had half a week working very early shifts (well, they would have been if loaded on time) then going 3 hours over the ‘usual time’ because clearly I was new at it. However, I have pointed out that traffic is a major concern, as leaving late means I get caught in the traffic and although I’m running 3 hours late, 2 hours of that lateness was probably spent in the yard waiting to get loaded.
But there have been other jobs where I have managed it sooner than the regular driver but what I often do at places where access is ‘difficult’ is I ASK another driver. This last week have had most drivers volunteering information to access certain sites and has been quite good and I thanked all those in turn 
The agency seemed pleased with my performance, and explanations too including that I’d prefer it I had a solid week of it rather than 0200-1500 Mon, Tue & Fri.
I’m registered with a few agencies and keep them apprised of my work situation and what days I am available, but there is one locally that has repeatedly let me down and as such will probably be loosing the use of me due to their incompetence…
Either way, good luck with your driving!
Every job I goto I expect I won’t find the place easily, will have to use my many resources available and get the job done. If I think they are being too unreasonable I can then mention the difficulties I am having… And try and work out a suitable solution
dar1976:
I guess I must have been very lucky. I got a 7.5t long distance run for my first assignment with 20 minutes notice. From then on it has been Class 2 with the odd 7.5t run. And that was all within a week of signing up.I must be ‘special’ lol
My first run was taking a Renault Midlum 18t flatbed sleeper up to Glasgow with 3 drops from the Midlands. The cruise control didn’t work, the restricter worked in an odd way and I ended up having balance the speed at 50mph for the 2 days with careful footwork just to keep going.
The vehicle was in a disgusting condition and being my first night out it would have helped if I hadn’t forgotton my sleeping bag at home. I remembered my stove and brew kit Thank God though!!!
Live and learn eh?!
some drivers look down on the multi drop guys(and girls) i"ll tell you , it"s stress stress stress >all day and into the night ! i was multi dropping in london for BRAKES ,many years ago (agency) i was out on run so long the TM called me up and told me to bring whatever was still on vehicle back! didn"t a*** me about it ,think he knew the script !! yeah ,is such hard graft <anyone ever had deliveries where you had to get the cash from customer 1st? not at all pleasant ! still ,once done , any other work seems like a breeze!
Yeah, I had one of them with a local company. New to the job then, insisted I unload everything first but knew how bad it could go so said the boss had said I had to get cash before delivery. Chap refused, rang boss. Seems the chap had had stuff before then complained it wasn’t right or something and refused to pay. I was told to carry on with the route. Jeez great boss. This is more than half the load and it was right at the back door 
Still, didn’t want an arguament with the chap so said i was going for the ‘other paperwork’ and just [zb] off. The chap in the shop even moaned at me that i was late and he desperately needed all that stock, 4 [zb] pallets
further saratoga, once i got the folding stuff , and counted it , it had 2 be put in a little tin box bolted between the seats, which had like a 50pence padlock on it ! and i"m thinking "last drop chances are i could get whacked 4 a fair amount of dosh here! WTF? got back ,timesheet signed , another string 2 the bow.! carpet deliveries anyone ? on your own? get"s 2 1st drop and found winch is inop! me, hoping 2 impress ( yeah, i know!) spent the entire shift pulling and dragging those f***ing carpets from truck 2 store(S)! total muppet! £4 per hour,1996 class one !class bloody act !
Had a close call some years back delivering home furnishings where we had a COD. Cust requested we unload it all first as it was a family and me and the 2nd man had agreed to do it the other way around. I was the agy and he was the employed guy but when we got there he changed his mind. Took it all off, then they refused to pay, so we started to take it all back and the family kicked off, quite a few of them. I let him do the talking and started carrying them back then they relented. 5 expensive cars (merc, bmw, audi etc) drove off and they returned with the cash of that what was owed plus the other stuff they had had, grossed at just under £2k.
When we left the customer they followed us. Got a bit worried so called the boss and being an evening coming in instructed us to meet up with one of their trampers running in taking a 45 at the nearby motorway services.
Met him on the pumps, big guy too, and the cars that had been following our little 7.5t melted away and this guy looked after the cash for us. Counted it all with the guy, he gave us a little receipt and we carried on with the run.
I think we all get into trouble occasionally with this COD stuff and each of us deal with it differently, some good and some bad.
Another time double manned RTU and the cash float was down. I hadn’t even got ANY money with me at all, but the 2nd guy tried to claim that it was me. I just replied that I was there as a driver and he’d opted to deal with the cash, it all went in there with the paperwork and if you think I’ve nicked it then you get the police in here now and we’ll deal through them. Company didn’t want the hassle, told the agy and they took my side and siad it had come up before and just to leave. Oddly enough a few months later they tried to claim id nicked a works mobile last time I was in there and had to explain their ‘debrief’ procedure which was basically handing all the paperwork in, forms, fuel sheet, check sheet and sign over the keys and the mobile phone and they accept it and counter sign it. I could not have left the premises with anything of theirs!!! Strangely enough they didn’t call back to apologise or explain what had happened but still got work…
Multi-drop - you either love it or hate it.
I told agencies any more than three drops don’t ring me 'cos I ain’t doing it. Now, you may think this arrogance (confidence?) would be counter productive. But, I find that despite saying that, i do still get work. It’s almost as if they think, yeh,this guy knows it’s ■■■■■ we can’t get away with it here. I guess I do lose out, but as multi-drop pays poorly I can’t say I’m that fussed. Gimme trunking any day…
“Now since the new AWR this has “dried” up”
Know that feeling. 12 months with one company only to be dropped like a lead weight when AWR kicked in.