Expert Advice

So about 2 years a go I started with Prime, and completed their CDL training, went on the road solo for about 6 more months. I had an opportunity to get back into the line of work I was coming from. It would allow me to be home every night, and offered to me what I thought was a better life. However 12 months later i'm itching to get back out on the road. but this time I want to go lease, and eventually start my own company. I left Prime in good standing, I put in a two weeks notice, and completed the driving for two weeks that they needed for me to do.

My question here though is. I was sent a piece of mail a few months back looking for the re-imbursement for their training, and I can say I have not done anything with it at the moment. I don't know anyone that has $5k handy to just a pay a bill. Do you think that Prime would allow me to come back? would I need to pay the training money back first? etc. im not sure if anyone has been through this.

Hey Eric, it's great to hear from you again!

I'm gonna be real blunt with ya. You really know how to make a mess of things! Let's count the ways...

You started a career that requires considerable Commitment, then you quit.

You agreed to a contractual agreement, then you never even bothered to take care of your part of the agreement.

You made a promise to pay Prime a considerable amount of money if you quit early. Now that you've quit, you say, "I don't know anyone that has $5k handy to just a pay a bill."

Now you want to complicate your situation even further with higher aspirations for trouble. You're wanting to lease a truck! Eric, are you sure you can pass a drug test? Because, I've got to tell ya, it seems like your smoking some bad stuff!

I don't understand why someone who was already doing so poorly at something that they ended up quitting, would want to jump right back in and make it even harder on themselves. Now you may say, "I wasn't doing poorly." You need to go over that list we just made before you come back with that response.

Why in the world would you consider leasing a truck at this point? You are adding more commitments on top of the ones you haven't been able to keep yet. Does that sound like good solid thinking for a guy who wants to start his own company?

Eric, sometimes I get frustrated in here, and you just pushed all the right buttons to frustrate me. We try so hard to teach you guys the ins and outs of this career, and then you do everything counter to our advice, fall flat on your faces, and then come back wanting advice on doing something more stupid on top of the stuff you've already screwed up! I'm banging my head against the walls of my sleeper right now!

Here's my advice: if you want to get back into this, call a recruiter at Prime and humbly beg forgiveness while explaining how you want to come back as a company driver. Finish your commitment to them. Expect them to require additional training and a further commitment from you that is more than your original commitment. Take whatever they offer, if they will. Then do your part. For God's sake, stick it out and prove to yourself that you have the integrity and the resolve to finish what you start.

Don't Lease A Truck! Eric, we never advise that approach. Are you just thinking you'll make more money? If you want to make good money in trucking, you've got to get past that mentality that says you have to be the owner. I don't know how that school of thought ever got established. I'm a long time business owner and I have had employees who made great money during years that I Iost money.

In trucking, your performance says it all. You don't need your name on the doors of the truck to be making a great income. In fact, you're statistically more likely to earn more money as a good solid company driver. That's what you need to focus on. So far, you've made a huge mess of things. Take a look at this article about trucking...

Show Me The Money!

A good company driver can learn to control his own destiny. You can measure out your own salary. Eric, I'm part of a small dedicated group of Top Tier Drivers on a dedicated account at Knight. Three of our top drivers decided to lease trucks last year. One, out of the four of us, is making considerably more money than the others. Yep, it's that fool who stayed a company driver!

Hi Eric, Reading your post, you give the impression that you were surprised to receive a letter from Prime's legal dep't re: your tuition reimbursement, given that you left the company in good standing. One thing does not have to do with the other. Leaving Prime in good standing only means that they'll leave the door open for you to return, if you so choose. Not addressing the letter will not make it go away. If you decide not to continue with Prime, please take care of it, contact their legal dep't, work out payment arrangements, something... just don't let them send it to collections. Because they will. The questions you asked about returning to Prime, you really should contact someone at Prime about them. Not a driver, but someone in their legal, regulatory, or human resources department. I am sure there is a precedent for your scenario; since you handled your departure in a professional manner, leaving on good terms, it seems likely that they'll allow you to work out your original contract and may not demand repayment for your tuition/CDL... but again, best to ask someone in their H.R. department directly. Good luck, I hope it works out for you.

Like others have said. Talk with Prime and see if they will take you back. You are lucky they didn't sue you for their money. If they will take you back and you go lease, you are putting yourself in deep financial risk. How bad? $5000.00 will seem like chicken feed. Get out here and drive as a company driver for at least one full year. Not 6 more months, one strait year. You need to learn how to drive and back without hitting anything. You also need to learn how to manage your clock and freight lanes. Make sure this is the lifestyle you want. If you want to be home more lease/truck ownership is not for you. How can you take time off with that truck payment due weekly?

Look at what you told us, in the past year you started two careers and didn't give either a fair shot. You need some tenacity. Good luck.

My guess is that prime will take you back, make you sign another contract for a year and make you do TnT over. If you havent renewed your DOT card you will have to do PSD and test over again cause your CDL was downgraded. that means another $5k contract and you didnt honor the first one. You could ask for.weekly payments to pay down that debt because as it stands, your word means nothing.

As far as leasing, i wouldnt do that until you know for sure you are going to stay OR to take over someone elses lease for 6 mos or so to see what it is like. that "walk away lease" is a myth cause in that contract you need to pay for the truck to be put back to original form..meaning $70 for every drill hole you made for a TV, game system etc. it means every scratch, nick, or ding. My friends turn in price came to $7,000!!!! you are upset about $5k now.

honestly, you didnt drive lomg enough to know where the high paying loads are, the states with the highest IFTA tax, or where the dead freight zones are. Plus, im sure your time management skills need improvement so your revenue wouldnt be anywhere near what you think it will.

good luck

First I’d like to say thank you for the responses. My intent is never to upset anyone.

I know now (hindsight being 20/20) that me leaving was a bad decision. I made an emotional decision to leave Prime a year ago. I also am not 100% decided in the lease thing. I have been monitoring freight rates, for the past 2-3 months for various mile lengths, and taking the average to get an idea.

I know I will have to go back hay in hand. And I am prepared to make a deal to make my previous contract right. I’m hoping since I didn’t leave to just run off to another driving job that will carry some weight.

I have kept my CDL active. I need to swap it over to Texas but that’s it.

I definitely know I’m not the best driver, and have a million things more to learn. Unfortunately I have always been one to learn through making a mistake first. And leaving was my mistake. I was doing well at least that’s what it looked like on my W2 I was on track to make around 55k the first full 12 months solo. If I recall that’s net not gross. ( I ran the numbers a few months back)

I’m just rambling on here. I again want to say thank you, and I appreciate the advice.

Pretty simple. If you don’t have $5k to pay them, you sure don’t have enough to start your own trucking business. And that’s what a lease is.

Eric on his decision...

I know now (hindsight being 20/20) that me leaving was a bad decision. I made an emotional decision to leave Prime a year ago. I also am not 100% decided in the lease thing. I have been monitoring freight rates, for the past 2-3 months for various mile lengths, and taking the average to get an idea.

Well Eric you have already made one regrettable decision, leasing a truck would be another bad, emotional decision; like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. You have never run a business and have very little experience running a truck. What makes you think leasing is ever a good option? Do you think Prime is more likely to take you back if you do that?

There are several good articles in the Trucking Truth blog section on the pitfalls of leasing. I urge you to read them, and at least for now completely forget about leasing. It would be a very foolish move at this point.

Eric, I've never run a trucking company, but I have owned a couple of businesses. Let me explain some of the realities of what you have to get involved with to own a business with employees:

1. Get a business entity - a corporation or an LLC. For liability purposes you don't want to be a sole proprietor (schedule C) as it put EVERYTHING you own at risk.

2. Get insurance for both your truck and your employee's trucks.

3. Get unemployment insurance for your drivers.

4.Open a separate bank account for the business and don't overdraw it.

5. Pay someone $100 to $300 per hour to do your tax return every year. My guess is $2,000 to $3,000 per year if you have good records (you won't).

6. Withhold and pay to the government Federal and State withholding taxes. (If you don't do this there are big penalties and the IRS will go after your personal assets even if you are a corporation or an LLC.

7. Pay someone to do your payroll every week because if you are driving you won't have time. Oh yea, employees get really testy if they don't get paid.

8. Be responsible for ALL of the repairs on your truck. If you don't have $5,000 to pay off the debt you owe right now how will you afford a new transmission or engine.

9. You have to pay for your own fuel. Even if you get 10 mpg on your truck (and I'm pretty sure you don't) a 1500 mile trip will cost you better than $375 in fuel alone at $2.50 per gallon. I don't think you can buy diesel for anywhere near that right now.

10. A hundred other things I can't think about right now.

I know it sounds nice being your own boss - it ain't so fun believe me and everyone else here.

Now for your $5,000 debt. Prime may have been patient so far but at some point this patience will wear out. At that point they will sell your debt to a company that does nothing but collect debts all day long for somewhere between 10 cents and 50 cents on the dollar. Believe me when I tell you that these folk know every trick in the book that you may know and some you don't even know exist. Even if you can't go back to Prime you need to make some kind of arrangement to get this debt paid. I imagine that right now it is showing up on your credit report as a past due/collection account. This will drop your credit score low enough that you will have a hard time getting any kind of credit, and if you can it will be VERY expensive.

I would heed everyone's advice here and get back to work driving for someone if that's how you want to make your living but however you make your living you need to get this debt paid. IT AIN'T GOING AWAY!