What could i expect to earn once experienced for long distan

Hello, just looking for some advice please. I have been offered an interview for an apprenticeship long distance lgv driver with Fergusons. I am just trying to work out what sort of pay is realistic once fully qualified and experienced. I have tried doing some research and found some jobs only paying 25k but a friends dad is a long distance chemical driver and has told me he achieves 65k? So whats peoples experience with this? Thank you for the help in advance

michaelalan:
Hello, just looking for some advice please. I have been offered an interview for an apprenticeship long distance lgv driver with Fergusons. I am just trying to work out what sort of pay is realistic once fully qualified and experienced. I have tried doing some research and found some jobs only paying 25k but a friends dad is a long distance chemical driver and has told me he achieves 65k? So whats peoples experience with this? Thank you for the help in advance

£25k sounds fairly realistic for general haulage. ADR usually pays more, but I have never come across positions offering £65k otherwise I would have applied myself!

I cant see your dads friend picking up £65k. If he worked 60 hours a week that’s still over £20 an hour. Seems massively inflated to me.

All seems to depend on shifts. Week days? Night? Weekends? etc. Most places have different rates for each shift so that influences your take home. If by long distance you mean Tramping then you could earn about £40k based on what I’ve seen but then even these are hard to come by judging on vacancies I’ve seen.

Either way you can earn a decent living driving lorries whether its £25k or £45k. If driving lorries is what you want to do then go for it.

£65k … ask to see a payslip one won’t be produced.

Home at nights £25k on general haulage mon fri. £30k+ on retail on rolling shifts.

Can get over £30k tramping but you will live in the truck for 5 nights a week.

Biggest factor on wage seems to be on where you live and how much work there is…

Thanks very much for all the responses guys.

By the way he said it was with overtime he had a take home of 850 a week which i worked out as just under 65k before tax. He is an ADR driver.

Sorry, mate, but he is pulling your plonker. I just checked with my mate and he is ADR with Brit European and has worked for several other firms and he says they get nowhere near that figure. He wouldn’t be precise obviously but he laughed his head off at £65k. Maybe 40 but not 65.
By the way, you have me slightly puzzled? What exactly is an apprenticeship in long distance driving? Are you saying that you are a non licence holder and they are going to put you through the training? Or are you already a class 1 holder with no experience? Because there is a difference. If you are already a licence holder then in reality you should get the same money as every other driver regardless of experience unless they do ADR and you don’t. If they are going to put you through the training then you have to take what they offer until you pass out as it is an expensive process these days what with DCPC, then the theory bit and then the actual driving test.
I have to say I have never heard of an apprenticeship in long distance driving before but then I am an old ■■■■. If Fergusons have offered to put you through the training then grab the chance as it will save you about £3-4k. You’ll more than likely have to agree to work for them for three years then but that’s no problem.

Thanks Bear, i am a non licence holder so it is them putting me through the test. I am prepared to take the start wage but would hope to get a good wage i thought 35 to 40 would be doable in a few years with an adr. Just want to know its worth doing as i would have to drop out of college. (I’m currently doing 7 days a week between college and bus driving) i would have an earning potential of 21k as a bus driver in my area and want to try take that above 30k. I know that sounds greedy but i have left 2 apprenticeships due to medical reasons (wont stop me driving hgv) that would have paid around 30k so i just want to achieve that with a job i enjoy. Thats the dream anyway.

My brother in law does tankers (ADR) and works Thursday to Monday nights. He earns about £44k a year. But thast doing all of the premium shifts. I know a lot of drivers want to stay away from weekend work though. And a lot want to stay away from nights too. All depends what you want to do really.

Phil1979:
My brother in law does tankers (ADR) and works Thursday to Monday nights. He earns about £44k a year. But thast doing all of the premium shifts. I know a lot of drivers want to stay away from weekend work though. And a lot want to stay away from nights too. All depends what you want to do really.

Hi Phil thanks, I am prepared to work weekends and nights don’t really bother me so i suppose there is hope. :slight_smile:

Is that Ferguson based in Washington :question:

If so doubt you will earn 30k with themm unless you gt on the scanners not much ADR up here mind

Hi Michael.

I can only speak with probably outdated experience which may not be entirely helpful. However just some pointers worthy of consideration.

Whether long distance or short distance there is no perceivable pay difference in the UK. Any difference may come from the heavy amount of hours a tramper does. There is a small pay difference between rigid and artic in the UK or the adr/specialised/car transporter type work. The rest is down to location and employer. Some employees earn good money (30k) for 8-10 hours a day on supermarket contracts. Many do not. When I did long distance I tramped out all week and put in 65-70 hours a week. I earned £6.50 an hour and £17.50 a night out. Then I moved to a day rate of £80 plus £17.50 a night out (2003 figures)

Just looking on here many consider a non agency full time hourly rate that’s good to be £10/hour basic. Those on agency who earn more are not in this equation as they have liability and risk without contract/guarantee of work/pension.

If you work on £10/hour, doing 65 hours a week for 11 months plus 4 nights out a £20 then 1 month at holiday pay of 37.5 contract hours a week that comes to very roughly £38,540pa. But for that you have worked 3129 contract hours a year. For comparisons sake, In my current role I’m salaried for 1600 duty hours a year. So you’re on a salary of probably less than 20k on £10 tramping when broken down- you just work twice as much.

The best money per hours worked is a high hourly rate on day work, normally found outside of tramping.