Originally Posted by drzebra

Grand total of $1180.84 gross pay for the week. Comes out to about $0.39 per mile this week.

Originally Posted by drzebra

Ok. Let's do the math. Using this week's figures.

I have two runs this week. The first paid out at $2882.17, broken down as follows:

$1884.89 as my cut of the linehaul revenue (72%)
$987.28 for the fuel surcharge (100% of what is billed to the customer)
$10.00 for the extra stop (it was a two-stop load)

The second pays out at $1411.12:

$1054.56 as my cut of the linehaul revenue
$256.56 fuel surcharge
$100.00 for the lumpers at the delivery end

Grand total of $4293.29 gross revenue.

Now come the deductions:

$1834.51 in fuel leaves me with: $2458.78

My fixed costs for the truck are:

$904.13 (this includes lease payment, insurance, qualcomm, accounting and statements (optional services!), licensing and permits, fuel card)

This leaves me with $1554.65.

Variable non-fuel costs come out to $0.122 per mile and include fuel/road taxes, agents' fees, miscellaneous (tolls, money transfer fees, etc), mileage fee, and tire fund.

I was dispatched 3064 miles this week, meaning that my variable costs come out to: $373.81 (actually, that's a really high estimate based on my previous statements)

Grand total of $1180.84 gross pay for the week. Comes out to about $0.39 per mile this week. Yeah, not great this time, but the long load paid crappy and it sucked having to buy fuel in California. Normally my gross pay comes out to around $0.43 per mile.

Yes, I know what you're going to say. I can make more as a company driver elsewhere. But I don't want to do that because I don't want to play company driver games, and I doubt that there are many outfits that would pay the large salaries to drivers with under a year of experience.

Besides, I'm just now starting to get a handle on cost control, and my profit is getting more consistent (and better) as a result. Like anything else, this is a learning curve and I'm still trying to get out of the company driver mentality at times.

But my point is that I'm not going into the poorhouse. I'm not losing my azz or anything even close to that. I don't spend all the money I make. I don't bling my truck out and I don't have all the fancy, shiny toys at home. I'm saving up for a fat down payment on a house, and I'll have that to show for my toils. That's really all I want and need.

Originally Posted by dollarshort

.39 as a independent contractor!!!! :lol:

After taking out income taxes, insurance, etc. you are making less than .30 cpm. And you don't think you are going to the poorhouse? :roll:

WAKE UP!!!! Sure you think it's still great, but give it time. And oh, by the way, I am a previous Prime lease operator so I do know what I am saying. I also think your $987.00 fuel surcharge is a bit inflated on your first load?

The reason you give for leasing is so you can go home when you want and stay home as long as you want. Another wake up call.....You are a slave to that truck payment. When you go home the payment is still due.
If you go home more than one weekend a month for two days you will dig yourself a hole you will never get out of.

Lets see....I run where I want to run, go home when I want to, stay home as long as I want, don't have to pay for fuel, tires, maintenance, insurance, taxes, etc. all the while grossing about $1,200-$1,300 per week. Gee, what would you rather be doing.

Originally Posted by dollarshort

.39 as a independent contractor!!!! :lol:

After taking out income taxes, insurance, etc. you are making less than .30 cpm. And you don't think you are going to the poorhouse? :roll:

WAKE UP!!!! Sure you think it's still great, but give it time. And oh, by the way, I am a previous Prime lease operator so I do know what I am saying. I also think your $987.00 fuel surcharge is a bit inflated on your first load?

The reason you give for leasing is so you can go home when you want and stay home as long as you want. Another wake up call.....You are a slave to that truck payment. When you go home the payment is still due.
If you go home more than one weekend a month for two days you will dig yourself a hole you will never get out of.

Lets see....I run where I want to run, go home when I want to, stay home as long as I want, don't have to pay for fuel, tires, maintenance, insurance, taxes, etc. all the while grossing about $1,200-$1,300 per week. Gee, what would you rather be doing.

Come back here in 6 months and give us your sad story of why you didn't make it at Prime. :roll:

Originally Posted by greg3564

When you are a company driver you still pay insurance, taxes but no one ever mentions that.

Originally Posted by greg3564

When you are a company driver you still pay insurance, taxes but no one ever mentions that.

While some obviously feel very strongly against leasing, why attack the guy? Leasing works for him, so leave him be. I know four drivers who work for various companies that lease and do well. One has been leasing for five years and does quite well.

Originally Posted by retiredmb

Just curious, why would anyone want to buy a depreciating asset?

Depending on the structure of the business and special tax incentives, purchasing a depreciating asset is advantageous. For instance: I believe there is a one-time $10,000.00 automatic deduction for a tractor with a 5th wheel. I'm not positive, a real O/O could tell you. But most of the reasons are tax related. The other side of the coin is: If you are right side up on your loan or own the truck outright, you have a stronger financial standing when funds are needed to be borrowed than when you are trying to repair someone elses truck. Also, an asset can be sold. It will have value.... You cannot sell a leased item. It is not an asset, it is a liability on the books, and to lenders.

at least with a lease, the leasing co guarntees the value of the truck at the end of the 36 months, if you own it after 60 or 72 months, or at anytime during the contract period, you will guarntee the value, which would you rather pay $950.00 for 36 months or $1200.00 for 60 months, all of the lease payment is tax deductable, not all of the purchase payment is, only depreciation or mileage, also anything you do to a lease truck is tax deductable, at the end of the year, how much have you made leasing,,,,,,, buying, just curious?

Not so. You can bet that the leasing company has caveats to allow them to change or adjust the value of their asset at will. The used truck market determines the value of the tractor, not the leasing company. Oh, they will determine what your cost is....and pray you pay...because if there is a glut of used trucks, their asset's value drops like a rock. At the end of the lease....YOU DON"T OWN SQUAT! On a depreciable asset, you can deduct all expenses, to include all interest paid on the loan, plus depreciation or mileage costs (whichever is higher). How the taxes are done is not as simple as adding numbers and filling in blanks... Been there, done it will businesses and leased and owned vehicles. There are very specific rules in the IRS codes about this.

One of the greatest differences between owning your truck versus leasing THEIRS is that if you have a falling out, or decide to go elsewhere....with your truck you drive home or to the other place. BUT with theirs, you get out of the truck, clean it out....and leave like a company driver. Take the Greydog? Rent a car? Have someone pick you up? Its their truck, all you did was rent it and foot the bills.

My other guess is that Prime leases all of their equipment and sub-leases the tractors to the OO.