[sharbear36]

My husband FINALLY found a great job in Green Bay, Wi. He was an owner operator there for several months and they really seemed to take care of their drivers and paid well. My husband needed a radiator fixed and was short on funds so they offered to pay for it and just take a certain amount out of each check. Today, he went to get the money from Excel Express and they sold the company! They have new owners and they are not going to do that. Not only that, they are not keeping the owner operators unless you get your own authority. So he's out of a job as well. To top it off, he doesn't have the money to get the truck back from the repairs so it's a double whammy. Trucking has not been easy on us and yes he's probably made some bad decisions along the way but we were starting to pull things together. Now we will probably lose our house and everything else. I'm on a repayment plan with them because he did have his own authority at one time with a partner and that is when all the bad started to happen. He gave that up to go to Excel and just when you didn't think things could get any worse......BAM! Just in time for Christmas. Thank you for listening to me vent while I have my nervous breakdown.

Distraught in Wis
Shari

[DD60]

Originally Posted by sharbear36

My husband FINALLY found a great job in Green Bay, Wi. He was an owner operator there for several months and they really seemed to take care of their drivers and paid well. My husband needed a radiator fixed and was short on funds so they offered to pay for it and just take a certain amount out of each check. Today, he went to get the money from Excel Express and they sold the company! They have new owners and they are not going to do that. Not only that, they are not keeping the owner operators unless you get your own authority. So he's out of a job as well. To top it off, he doesn't have the money to get the truck back from the repairs so it's a double whammy. Trucking has not been easy on us and yes he's probably made some bad decisions along the way but we were starting to pull things together. Now we will probably lose our house and everything else. I'm on a repayment plan with them because he did have his own authority at one time with a partner and that is when all the bad started to happen. He gave that up to go to Excel and just when you didn't think things could get any worse......BAM! Just in time for Christmas. Thank you for listening to me vent while I have my nervous breakdown.

Distraught in Wis
Shari

NEVER depend on a carrier to provide funds for repairs. ALL in all I truly wish you all the best though.

[tootie04]

I pray everything turns out OK....I am so sad for you. I know how bad things can get because we have been there and done that.

you can feel free to PM if you need someone to talk too....

tootie

[solo379]

Sorry to hear that. :sad:
And thanks for sharing! Might save some "wannabe" a$$.
Tho..most of them, are not interested in that kind of storeys, cause it's too "negative" for their taste!

[BigDiesel]

Sounds like he should have not become an O/O.

An O/O needs to have enough capital and credit available to operate a minimum of 60 days. There should be NO reason to rely on a company that one leased to for repair funds or fuel money. Hence the title Owner-Operator.

This is a good lesson for potential O/O's

[GMAN]

I am sorry to hear about your misfortune, sharbear. Having a breakdown can be difficult at any time, but especially during this time of year.

[Double L]

I think alot of owner operators who rush into it look at only the positive and look at the money they can make but they don't take into consideration the negatives such as fuel, breakdowns, insurance, and all the other small things that can really break you! Remember chrome and lights don't make ya money but I feel if you got enough money saved up for unexpected repairs and some extra spending cash then I say go ahead and make your truck look good. But it's a bad idea to buy a truck and just go put lights and chrome on it without have extra money in the bank incase something does happen and your stuck with no money!

[Outta here]

Shari,
This is only a suggestion. Have your husband call Dave Van Handel at 800.876.4330. Dave is the owner and is one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet besides Gman. And that wasn't meant as a joke. Explain what happened and see if you can lease on with them. They have beautiful company trucks also. I never heard much about Excel Express. I actually thought they were are of business.
I have never heard one person say one bad thing about Dave or his company. This is one of the best, fairest companies in trucking.
He may even help you get the truck out of the shop. They are in Kaukauna,WI. From what I understand they run a lot of Carolinas. They are reefer and van.
Your husband is familiar with the company V&S Midwest Carriers.
Best wishes to you.
Steve

[sharbear36]

Thank you all for your support. I know that expenses come up and we had an escrow account for that but it didn't build up much. We are trying to have an account for repairs but as soon as something positive starts to happen a huge repair comes up. Trust me, I wish he could get out of trucking but it's all he knows. As for his truck, trust me, no bells and whistles on this baby. I never heard the man cry but yesterday he was very choked, it's hard on a man that is trying his best to support his family and it seems like everything is working against you. I tried to PM minpin but I guess I don't have 50 posts so I couldn't but thanks for the kind words. Also, thanks for the suggestion on the company in Kaukauna, I'm going to give him that info right away. I hope there are still some great owners out there because we have sure dealt with the opposite. This guy at Excel was great but to not tell us this was happening was just unexcuseable. These drivers have families and it's Christmastime and just to let them all go is wrong. Thanks again everyone.

[tootie04]

You can email me if ya want [email protected]

tootie