Being A Company Driver

The husband said they were clearing $5000/week after all expenses.

David, puhleeez don't drink the Kool-Aid! That's the craziest lie I've ever heard.

David, leasing a truck is a really bad business model. It's completely tilted in the company's favor. That's why they like to buy trucks and then lease them to people who aren't smart enough to discern that revenues are not the same thing as income. If trucking were so extremely profitable, why wouldn't these companies be paying 250,000 dollar salaries to their team drivers? Yet, somehow people get duped into believing if they lease the truck they somehow become magically more valuable.

When you lease a truck you're still doing the same job, running the same interstates, burning the same diesel. What in the world changes the value of your labor? Nothing. Let me say it again... Nothing.

It has always seemed so clear to me. I guess it's my business background. We have been hammering away at this for years now. Leasing a truck is a terrible idea. I am running out of ways to say it. Please don't fall for the nonsense. Use your own head. Do some simple math. I honestly think I know a fifth grader who could lay out the math and convince himself how bad a business model leasing is.

Old School laments:

I am running out of ways to say it. Please don't fall for the nonsense.

I've only been on this forum a relatively short time and am surprised that this question is repeatedly asked and answered. Maybe Brett should change the forum tag line to "to empathize, encourage, inspire, and discourage anyone from lease operations or owner/operator."

11 Mpg this week! More money!

So not only do you get paid deadhead but it boosts fuel bonus. Go on.... Sounding pretty great thanks for sharing Donna.

@ Rob I had a setback but Prime has been great to me. The training although long is quite extensive. I believe I will come out of it about as prepared as a rookie can get. Haha still isn't saying much pretty big maze this country is.

I think there are several Prime drivers here. For a husband/wife team, would you recommend we lease or drive team as company drivers? I spoke with a husband/wife Prime team a few years back. They were doing the ace lease and the wife was a company driver for the benefits. The husband said they were clearing $5000/week after all expenses. Looking for advice. Thank you.

A couple weeks ago I was eating at the cafeteria in a Prime terminal. A few lease drivers were sharing mutual complaints about not being able to take time off because they needed to earn money to make payments. Part of the discussion were a husband and wife lease team. Their contribution to the conversation was about how they hoped to earn more by teaming. However, for one reason or another, things were not coming up roses for them financially...they weren't earning as much as they anticipated.

Thank you for this! I've seen some trailer stickers recently saying 65-70 cpm for teams 5500-6000 miles weekly. That's good money and no entrepreneurial headaches!

The husband said they were clearing $5000/week after all expenses.

David, puhleeez don't drink the Kool-Aid! That's the craziest lie I've ever heard.

David, leasing a truck is a really bad business model. It's completely tilted in the company's favor. That's why they like to buy trucks and then lease them to people who aren't smart enough to discern that revenues are not the same thing as income. If trucking were so extremely profitable, why wouldn't these companies be paying 250,000 dollar salaries to their team drivers? Yet, somehow people get duped into believing if they lease the truck they somehow become magically more valuable.

When you lease a truck you're still doing the same job, running the same interstates, burning the same diesel. What in the world changes the value of your labor? Nothing. Let me say it again... Nothing.

It has always seemed so clear to me. I guess it's my business background. We have been hammering away at this for years now. Leasing a truck is a terrible idea. I am running out of ways to say it. Please don't fall for the nonsense. Use your own head. Do some simple math. I honestly think I know a fifth grader who could lay out the math and convince himself how bad a business model leasing is.

It’s rather simple business! I drive a company truck, this truck has to make money so prime can pay the payment. This lease driver said e/she would pay payment on the one they drive. Who do u think Prime is gonna give that load to?

I team with the wife at Prime as company drivers. Also good friends with a lease team running on the same account as us.

Prime has a great company bonus for teams based on miles run per week. Few weeks back we netted 7k miles in a week and made over 6 grand between us. Hard to maintain that mileage, but even 6k miles a week is gonna be 5 grand.

The guy pulling 5 grand as a team lease/company is believable. The lease team that runs the same route as us makes more money, although taking benefits and less taxes and vacation into account it's probably a wash.

I personally would recommend company till you are ready to make that decision yourself. I've run company for over five years here and I'm happy with it, getting three weeks of paid vacation a year is making it harder to jump ship. Unless something happens to our account, our company, or one of us I'll probably retire here.

My lease buddy is happy too, he's been leasing with Prime for I believe ten years now.

It’s rather simple business! I drive a company truck, this truck has to make money so prime can pay the payment. This lease driver said e/she would pay payment on the one they drive. Who do u think Prime is gonna give that load to?

I get this line of thinking, and it's probably true at some places, but Prime is not one of them.

I ran on a lease truck during training, and have some friends here that run successful leases.

Lease trucks tend to run the higher rate freight in my experience and run less miles than company trucks. They also tend to stay out longer to not get eaten up by fixed costs.

Prime wants their lease trucks successful just as they want their company trucks successful. They make money off of both.

Please do not take these last two posts as endorsements for leasing a truck. I am a company driver, and plan to stay a company driver. If you are inexperienced, you have no business leasing a truck.

Matt, when someone makes a statement like this...

The husband said they were clearing $5000/week after all expenses.

They are saying they are making over 250,000 dollars per year as a team. So, for clarification, are you and your wife doing that? Do you seriously believe that lease operator is doing that?

You told us about one great week you had...

Few weeks back we netted 7k miles in a week and made over 6 grand between us. Hard to maintain that mileage, but even 6k miles a week is gonna be 5 grand.

That's great, and it's fun to talk about those big numbers when we have a really strong week like that. Are you prepared to tell us you and your wife are "netting" 250,000 dollars per year?

I don't think so, but we'd love to hear it if it's the truth.

and have some friends here that run successful leases

Very few people truly understand the business world. They don't know what being successful as a business owner means. Success means you were well-compensated for the additional risk, hard work, and sacrifices you make as a business owner or you get to live a lifestyle you could never live as an employee. If you live the same lifestyle and you're not compensated well for the additional burdens, you have failed as a business owner. What you have done is buy a job.

Owning or leasing a truck is what we refer to as 'buying yourself a job' because if you're lucky you'll make as much as a company driver. Often they'll make less. You'll also live the same lifestyle, no better. So what have you gained?

One of the main reasons to start a business is to take control of your destiny. You want to call the shots. In trucking, you have very little control over your destiny. Sure, you can haul the loads you want and refuse the ones you don't want. You can also take vacations whenever you like. But if you only have two real choices - do what you have to or go broke - is that really a choice? Have you really taken control of your destiny? Sure, I guess, in the same way a person preparing to jump off a building has control of their destiny.

In reality, as a lease driver or owner-operator, you have very little meaningful choice or control over your destiny. You must haul the best paying loads you can find and keep those wheels turning nearly all year round, or go broke. If you took the same amount of vacation time as a company driver and hauled the same loads you would make far less than a company driver because you have additional overhead to cover. The company you're leased on with will not cover those expenses for you the way they do for a company driver.

As a business owner, you want one of two things; a lifestyle you could not have as an employee or to make far more money than you could make as an employee. As a lease driver or owner-operator, you will achieve neither. If things go well, you will live the same lifestyle and make the same money as a company driver. Often you won't even achieve that.

If you want to end a conversation quickly, ask a lease driver or owner-operator if you can see their tax filing. You want to see their "Net income after all deductions" - their actual profits for the year. If you were to look at their profits and then compare their lifestyle, financial risk, and additional burdens to yours as a company driver, the choice to remain a company driver would be clear.