[rgarthman1969]

I have found alot of information on load boards on here. I have been searching loads on getloaded demo site and once in a while they will post $$$$ for that load. Most equals out to be around $2.00 a mile. Does this include FSC and tarp pay?

[GMAN]

If they post a rate it is usually all inclusive. That doesn't mean that there isn't some room for negotiation. Rates have been off for the last couple of weeks. They should pick up more as soon as produce gets moving again. Most brokers seem to be moving loads at or below $2/mile right now. One of the higher rates I have been quoted this week was $2.50/mile. Not enough for where those loads were going. :?

[dieselmanic]

you're not kidding that rates are off! :x fuel prices drop a little bit and every broker seems to think they can chop the rates paid to the truck. :evil: i've had brokers tell me that shippers are responsible for the reduced rates :? but as usual i find that hard to believe. :roll:

[rgarthman1969]

I guess all the boards are the same. Getloaded, Internet Truckstop, Members Edge along with the other 100 load boards. I think that the only way to ge the best rate is to work directly with the shipper.

[GMAN]

Originally Posted by dieselmanic

you're not kidding that rates are off! :x fuel prices drop a little bit and every broker seems to think they can chop the rates paid to the truck. :evil: i've had brokers tell me that shippers are responsible for the reduced rates :? but as usual i find that hard to believe. :roll:

Brokers have been having to pay much more to move loads for the last couple of months. When the fuel drops a few pennies they think that they can push the rates down quickly and make a tidy extra profit at the carriers expense. Many of these brokers have contracts with shippers which means that the rates are not going to drop that much with fuel still being high. Shortly, reefers will be taken out of the mix with them starting to haul produce. This will allow more room for negotiation to get the loads moved. I still keep my rates up. A few cents drop in fuel prices don't impact the rate I charge. It is rather amusing when a broker quotes me a low rate when I come back and tell them what WE charge for those areas. They are apparently not accustomed to carriers telling them what it will take for them to move their trucks. Of course, I have been doing this for some time and those whom I have dealt know that I won't haul cheap freight. I don't make it a secret as to what I will charge to go to a specific area. I also charge to tarp loads. Some don't want to pay the extra, but if they want me to haul the load they will either pay the tarp charge or find someone else who will tarp for free. It is amazing how many people who will give their time and services away. I pay my drivers well. The only way that I can do that is to charge a fair rate. If you plan on staying in business you better be charging a decent rate.

Originally Posted by rgarthman1969

I guess all the boards are the same. Getloaded, Internet Truckstop, Members Edge along with the other 100 load boards. I think that the only way to ge the best rate is to work directly with the shipper.

I think that getloaded and internettruckstop are better than some of the others that I have checked. Not all load boards have all of the same loads. As far as working directly with shippers, you can often get better rates, but not always. In fact, some shippers like to get independents to haul for less than the brokers. I have gotten some good paying loads from some brokers. The key is in negotiating. The better your negotiating skills, the greater the rate you will be able to command. If you want to haul freight for $1.20/mile you will have brokers beating your door down. Of course, you will be broke in a short time, but until you lose everything you own, you will stay busy and the brokers will love you. :roll:

[NotSteve]

Originally Posted by rgarthman1969

I think that the only way to ge the best rate is to work directly with the shipper.

Shippers are not stupid either. They are not going to pay $3.00 per mile when they know there are plenty that will do it for much less.

Most shippers will not deal directly with a carrier. Too much trouble. Easier for them to call a broker and be done with it.

Call up a few companies in your area and you will find out real quick.
Just ask for logistics.

[rgarthman1969]

So there is noway to cut the middle man out. So love them or hate them, its just like a marriage. :lol:

[NotSteve]

You may get lucky but in reality that's the way it is. If you had a small fleet of trucks you could possibly land a steady contract with a shipper for good money but a one truck operation is pretty much going to get close the same rate with a broker or shipper.

I know of a few people on here that have been hauling for many many many years. I also know they have a few shippers but that only accounts for maybe 5% of their loads. The rest come from brokers off the load boards. They may get a shipper load going out but getting back they are at the mercy of the wicked load boards.

And by the way. You won't see them posting what the haul for. The old timers are smarter then that. They will lead you to believe they must be getting really big bucks. Let me clue you in pal.

Like I said above, there is something really really simple for you to try and you don't even have to be a carrier to find out. Start calling the logistics department in businesses in your area and see what you get???? Most will not deal with a carrier and the rest will already know what to offer you minus the brokers commission.

[GMAN]

The problem the small carrier has is capacity. If you want to deal directly with shippers then you need to find smaller shippers who will deal with independents. The larger shippers seem to prefer either brokers or larger carriers who have access to the capacity. For instance, you may have one shipper who has 20 loads a week. A single truck operation simply cannot handle the capacity. The shipper will need to make numerous calls to get the loads covered by small carriers or independents when he can make a single call to a broker or large carrier and accomplish the same thing. It is a mixed bag dealing directly with shippers. There are some shippers who will attempt to take up to 1/3 of the line-haul rate when they find a truck directly. I have one shipper who did this. They wanted me to discount my rates so that they could stick the difference in their pockets. I refuse to do business with unethical people. That practice is unethical and I won't participate. I was getting from $2.50-3.00 or more per mile with this shipper. That was when fuel was about 1/2 what it is now. He found truckers who would haul these same loads from $1.40-1.70/mile. I might still be able to do business with him, but have no desire after he started this practice. He called it "brokering" his own loads. He started this when he turned over some of his shipments over to ICCI or one of the large cheap brokers and found out what they were paying trucks to haul their loads. I don't think that I have hauled a load for this shipper since last year. I had one broker who called me to haul one of these loads from a different shipper (same product) who tried to get me to take one for $1.50. :roll:

[NotSteve]

Ya, what the Blue Avenger said exactly!!!!!!!!!!!!!