Is it possible for a fleet to be leased or is it a issue like I suspect it is? if you can only be leased to one company which would be a good where you could pull most types of trailers?

 

That KW in your avatar looks way familiar...which dealer lot was it sitting for sale on when you took the picture?

 

I have known of several fleet owners who have leased to carriers. Frankly, I think if you are a fleet owner it would be better to run your own authority rather than leasing to a carrier. I recall one who had quite a few trucks who leased to U.S. Xpress. I know others who leased to Landstar. I have met a couple of fleet owners who have leased their trucks to more than one carrier.

U.S. Xpress doesn't have a variety of trailers. Landstar does. I don't know of any fleet owners with Jones or Mercer, but they also have a variety of freight types.

 

Ok wat about jb hunt they have a vast variety of freight types plus dedicated, local & whatnot. What are the in and outs of leasing and your own authority?

 

JB Hunt and some of the other large carriers certainly have the freight base, but they don't pay their owner operators enough.

When you lease to a carrier you are limited to the freight they have available. They do take care of a lot of things for you. They usually file your IFTA taxes, handle your base plates and permits. They also find and book loads for you. They normally advance you money once you are loaded and pay you at least weekly on what you have delivered. If you have a major breakdown, some may finance or advance you sufficient funds to have the repairs made. Most carriers take about 25% of the line-haul rate.

When you run your own authority you are responsible for everything involving your business. You do all paperwork and pay the bills. Unless you factor your loads or do quick pay, you will need to have sufficient funds to keep you going and pay your bills for at least 30-90 days. You will also need to find and book your own loads, bill brokers or shippers and everything else involved in running your business. There is no safety net when you run your own authority.

 

I know swift has many private fleets leased on, the biggest being DSW that have quite a lot of trucks.

 

I don't see how any fleet can make it leased to ANY carrier who pays $0.80-0.90/mile, even with the fsc. Fuel alone will run close to $1/mile. Add driver and you are getting close to $1.40-1.50/mile. Perhaps they have a much higher rate for those with multiple trucks. I don't see the benefit for anyone who has a fleet to lease to a carrier. I think that a fleet owner is much better off running their own authority. Your options are much greater when you run your authority.

 

.75 in fuel per mile is pretty hard to attain lately. At 6mpg and 75cpm in fuel, you're at 4.50/gal. Not too many states have diesel at that price. It is around $5/gal in California. Gman calculates on 5mpg, which is more realistic. Once a truck cools down fora few minutes at the end of the day, is backing into a dock, or starting up in te beginning of the day, you take a hit on mpg. While sometimes negligable, it adds up.

A driver making 40cpm with 85cpm in fuel is $1.25. Take your truck payment, maintenance, plates, etc and owning a truck starts adding up. $1.249 fuel at FedEx hubs was a killer deal. At 5mpg, your fuel costs are 25cpm...not too shabby.

 

There is more to driver compensation than mileage pay. The employer must match the employee's Social Security Tax (which is 7.5% of the pay)unless he pays with a 1099. Depending on the state and number of drivers, the fleet owner may also need to provide workers compensation insurance or some sort of accident policy. In addition, the fleet owner will likely need to offer some sort of insurance to the driver, which is another cost. You also need to add the cost of maintenance, pm's, tires, truck insurance and payments. There are a lot more costs involved in running a truck when you look at hiring drivers. There are also a lot more costs involved with the truck than fuel. And Bandit is correct about how I calculate my fuel costs. When you calculate your operating costs you should figure costs high rather than low if you want to stay in business. I have gotten as low as 4.99 mpg running in the mountains and wind out West. I average over 6 mpg over the quarter. Your mpg can vary according to where you run and what you haul.