As well as the cost of the medical and the licence,factor in a cost of +£1000 to get your licence.
Then you have the problem of getting work,as despite the comment that getting agency work is easy,the agencies customers and their insurance companies will insisit,ususally,on you having some experience before you even get the keys to a truck.(If agency work is easy,why am I sat at home today????)
Yes I know,it's a chicken and egg situation,how do I get experience if no-one will take me on,which is the question that has been asked since time began.
I was lucky when I got my class 1 (Now C+E) in 1996,as I already had my class 2,and was working for a transport company,so was able to step up straight away.Others are not so lucky.
Also bear in mind,that it takes balls to go from taking your test in an unladen unit and trailer,to sitting on top of something weighing 44 tonnes,getting it moving,and being able to stop it.And as Number Cruncher says,and is correct,you can't just go to your class 1 anymore,you have to do it through progression,so your +£1000 cost has just escalated to at least twice that.
I'm not trying to put you off,just giving you some of the other facts,before you part with your hard earned.
Edited by helmet on 15/05/2008 at 11:41
|
>>how do I get experience if no-one will take me on
Yes, it's a problem. I found that the parcel companies and other multi-drop firms have a very high rate of driver no-shows, and as a result, they aren't quite as fussy as some other companies. The work is grim, but, it does give you some experience.
Perhaps it depends where in the country you are, and how flexible you can be. While I was doing agency work, I lived on the Lancs/Yorks border, and in the early days, I would happily travel to anywhere between Bradford and Manchester to get work and experience.
After a while, both the location and the quality of the work improved - and became almost tolerable!
|
Shoespy, the driver requirements change quickly, and if you had asked this question 3 to 5 years ago, i would have said, get it SS as soon as you can.
Basically the import of drivers has changed the trucking industry forever, same as the imports have done to the boot and shoe trade, as many living in my native Northamptonshire will testify.
Don't be inclined to take too much notice of adverts put out by driver agencies, giving rosy visions of footballers wages if you come and work for us, they are just getting as many drivers registered as possible, so when company X wants 4 chaps/ladies they have a load of numbers to ring, and with loads of numbers they can trot the old chestnut out ''this comany only pays xx rate but thats all we've got'', someone will be desperate and take it.
I'm sorry if i sound pessimistic, but things are not good, and the new cabotage rules coming soon will shove another dozen nails in the British transport industries coffin.
And take with a huge pinch of salt the (IMO government spin)story that eastern europeans are going home, yes some are to buy houses and smallholdings with their pay (they do seem to be able to take away more of their income than the natives), but replacements are plenty.
On a brighter note, as you seem to be available for mid summer, and the run up to Christmas, you may be in a good position for work especially in the summer hoiliday relief period.
As the other posters have said, the first couple of years work are difficult, but you are not a 21 year old, so you do have maturity in your favour.
As said above, budget for about £2k to get your full class 1, i'm going to stick a ball park figure of £7 to £9 per hour days on agency and probably £9 to £12 per hour nights.
You can find better, but for a couple of years thats probably the true earnings on agency and similar work.
There was a thread on a truckers forum recently where a large haulier (well known old company) wanted a night trunk artic driver at their Immingham depot and they were offering IIRC £6.49 per hour.....but you would get a big shiny truck with as many lights on the top of the cab as you wanted to buy (yes they really do buy these lights to put on someone else's vehicle).
In my honest opinion, i believe the transport industry is going to hit very bad times soon, and the wages will be going down further, British hauliers cannot compete with an eastern european operator paying peanuts and running all over Britain on fuel some 20% cheaper than ours, and remember we have to run legally.
I'm truly sorry to be so pessimistic, and maybe you could get a promise of work from people in your area, and good luck if you decide to go for it anyway.
(if you get your tests done now, and don't drive for two years, you'll still have two years experience in two years time, if you know what i mean...bull baffles etc)
Kind regards
|
Thanks GB for a very useful insight into the pros and cons of my notion. Have to say that is what I like most about this site. The expert knowledge which is often so freely and frankly shared. I may or may not pursue this idea further. It is one of a number of thoughts I am currently kicking around. Interested that you are in Northamptonshire. It's an area I know very well for perhaps obvious reasons and you are quite right it has changed dramatically. The few remaining successful businesses in my industry have played to their strengths and driven themselves even further upmarket on the basis that ordinariness can be copied but real quality takes experts.
I am just caught on the horns of a dilemma at present, I have a business which provides a living but a lot of free time and insufficient "spare" cash to really enjoy it. To that end I am looking to find other things to do which might prove interesting and at least partly lucrative.
Thanks to all for the useful and sound advice.
SS
|
I believe that fork lift drivers are as much in demand as truckers, and with fewer of the hassles.
|
EXPERIENCED FLT drivers are always in demand; being one myself, and also an HGV driver for 20 years, I'll offer a few words of advice and caution.
You really need to be doing FLT work on a daily basis in a warehouse to be any good at it; it's one of those jobs where practice does make perfect, and as a newly qualified driver you'll end up in at the deep end on agency jobs, and it may well put you off for life. Furthermore FLT driver demand is highest in the run-up to Christmas; I speak again from experience as I spent a couple of years as a recruitment consultant.
As a newly qualified HGV driver you will more likely get regular work, the rates are the same if not better and you won't be stuck in a hot/cold/draughty/dusty (delete as appropriate) warehouse all day.
If you really want guaranteed HGV work every summer, my advice is to take your class C and also gain a HIAB (lorry-mounted crane) licence. The builders' merchant trade is always on the lookout for drivers in spring and summmer, it's their busy period and it's local work, you're home every night at a civilised hour. On the downside there's often manual lifting involved, it can be dirty and you'll learn about reversing in tight spots very quickly!
I'd estimate that you'll recoup your initial (about 1500 quid) investment in your first year.
Good luck.
|
Some good advice from both Harleyman and Gordon Bennet there but as a further word of caution I would add that it isn't possible to work 5 days at your normal job and then drive an HGV on Saturday and Sunday without breaking tachograpgh and WTD laws.
It's complicated but as an example, even during the week, if you worked in an office from 9am till 5am and did nothing at all, you would only be able to drive that evening until midnight as your day job is classed as 'other work' on your tacho and likewise at the weekend.
Another problem in recouping your outlay is that so many major haulage firms have already closed their doors this year due entirely to the ever rising cost of fuel, and it will only get worse, which is now beginning to leave a lot of experienced drivers out there looking for jobs.
If you think of doing it full time then remember that I have just done 71 hours this week and that's normal in 5 days but on the plus side dawn breaking over Dartmoor this week was spectacular!
Good Luck and choose carefully.
Pat
|
>>breaking WTD laws
WTD laws are only compulsory for the employer, not the employee. An employee can choose to opt out of them (except in France, though that may have changed?)
The building trade is heading into a deep recession, this may affect the HIAB.
|
WTD laws are only compulsory for the employer not the employee. An employee can choose to opt out of them (except in France though that may have changed?)
It's different in vocational (LGV and PSV) driving. Under EEC driving regulations (admittedly a seperate issue from the WTD), a lorry driver has to take a weekly rest of at least 24 hours uninterrupted in a seven-day period; before anyone else corrects meI am fully aware that it's more complex than that but that is the basic requirement. Any other work you do outside driving counts on your tachograph records and should be recorded by the driver, not the employer.
If for example you worked a 5-day week in a factory, went HGV driving at weekends, and were involved in a crash, this would be taken into consideration, and as a driver you could realistically face jail and/or a hefty fine, as could your employer if he knew about it.
|
Absolutely not mapmaker, as an HGV Driver there is no opt out of the WTD, I'm afraid
Pat
|
|
More good stuff Ladies and Gents. Thank you. Plenty of food for thought. Some interesting points raised.
One which particularly caught my eye was the reference to working hours. This is in fact the crux of my dilemma. At certain times of the year, 100 hours a week are genuinely not unusual due to the severe time pressure of the industry. This is probably the main reason why most people involved in this activity are freelance. No employer would get away with issuing contracts which required that level of commitment. At other times, frankly, you would struggle to fill 12 hours a week. This crazy time is very finite however, and for large chunks of time I am very quiet. I am trying to find a second occupation to fill these times which can be done on an ad hoc basis and which might be based on driving. Any other suggestions though, would be most gratefully received.
|
|
|
|
|
My personal view is:
If you want to get your HGV then get it. Long term you will not be out of pocket as recouping the approx £2k it will cost will not be too difficult. Short term, you could struggle!
The whole industry is really going through it at the moment, fuel costs are seeing businesses close on a daily basis (I lost 2 clients inside of 24hrs the other week, and have lost 2/3rds of my client base since last November).
It has been a complete lie for many years that there is a shortage of drivers, there has never been. A company that pays a good wage will always find drivers, the problem is the companies that struggle to find drivers either pay rubbish money or have suspect operational issues!!!!
As a new driver you can nearly always find work either (as has been mentioned) with builders merchants or food delivery (3663 etc). Builders merchants work can be quite interesting and a good laugh but pay is pretty dia. having said that, it is one of the few 8-5 driving jobs there are, so if you like to keep normal working hours it will suit.
The food delivery work is normally very hard work for little reward, think of lugging 100 boxes of frozen food up numerous flights of stairs etc, then repeat that 20 times a day!!!!
|
It has been a complete lie for many years that there is a shortage of drivers there has never been. A company that pays a good wage will always find drivers the problem is the companies that struggle to find drivers either pay rubbish money
Agree fully with your post R75, especially the above sentence, but i would add the extra line that there is no shortage of licence holders, but for many years there has been a dearth of good drivers.
One major supermarket that was struggling to get drivers failed to mention they had completely changed their drivers contracts and pay, and were the first IIRC to import drivers, and pay through the nose for damage. That same supermarket previously had waiting lists of very experienced old school pro truck drivers, and was a 'dead mans shoes' position (that must be the job Shoespy is looking for then (pun intended, but probably not worth it)
|
|
|
|
|
|
