You're right about the fsc, I was a bit hasty when I posted that reply - my bad.

Any way - I will stay with the FSC based on $1.50/gallon and 6 mpg because I think it is fair for a carrier to cover half the cost of fuel - give or take.


Here's my reasoning:

I do not think it is fair for the driver to expect for the carrier to pay for all of his fuel - anymore than I feel it is fair for the carrier to expect the driver pay for all his fuel. And I am not depending on the customer to pay squat for fsc.

This is, after all, a partnership between the carrier and the driver. Drivers who sign on with us will understand this fact, or they won't sign on.

I believe one major reason that many drivers gripe (rightfully so) about their FSC, is that they do not make enough to start with - so, the only solution I see is to try to increase the loaded per mile rate.

What I plan to do is - leave the base rate @ $1.00/mile for the first 15 days, possibly 30 days - I'm honestly not sure. If and when - or - as soon as I see that I can routinely haul better paying freight, I will do what I can to bump the base rate to $1.25/mile and keep the same FSC I mentioned above.

Just for what it's worth.

One can get all spun up debating FSC but the basic fact is that for a carrier or O/O...it is costs plus profit=why we do it at all... :) FSC is simply to cover wide and very quickly changing fuel prices which comprises a major portion of the costs of doing business. A carrier or O/O can take $1.50 as a basis or $1.00 as the basis, it doesn't matter AS LONG as the difference is made up in the base rate!! I would accept either FSC as long as the TOTAL (fsc+$/mi) equaled what I am willing to run for. Once again, the FSC is simply to cover the fluctuation of fuel.

Are you saying that your customer does not pay any FSC and you will provide it to your O/O's? So if fuel goes from $2.98 to $3.20 in 1 week, you absorb that? Your customers will love you...as long as you can stay in business... :lol:
My feeling is fuel is a cost of doing business and the customer (and all of us ultimately) must bear that in the rates they pay!

We have tons of customers, some pay no FSC, but the rate is great - some do pay fsc, but the rate is low - as of yet, we do not have any customer that pays .26/mile. We feel our formula fairly balances out the reality of the situation.

Most of our customers simply want a quote that includes all extra charges, including FSC.

Some are reluctant to raise their base rate because they are afraid that they will lose customers. Instead, they rely on the fsc to help equalize the rate. I don't concern myself with the fsc provided rates are high enough for me to make a fair profit. A fsc is needed when you have low haul rates. A lot of customers have gotten used to paying a fsc for shipping products. Since there is a sense of non-permanence attached to a fsc, there is less resistance than simply raising rates.

All the discussion of how much the O/O should take home after expenses, the "cookie cutter" rate that every O/O sould be running for, the FSC rate calculation.

It's all pretty darn funny, and gave me a good laugh. Thanks again.

The only "funny", i see here, it's how the same contest, could be read differently, by different people! :roll: :P

Exactly.

A rough way of figuring out what you should make per mile is to take whatever the price of diesel is at the pump. Say it's 3.00. Long haul loads you can drop down under that somewhat...say .50...while short loads should pay 3.00 a mile or more. Call me crazy...but to make a decent living that's what I think a truck should gross.

As long as their are new drivers that want to be o/o there will always be .90 cpm carriers. As long as we have drivers before we have business men and women there will always be .90 cpm carriers.

Unfortunately, there is a difference, between "should", and "could"! :sad: