Forced Dispatch

I've taken every load without complaint, and have thanked my dispatcher quite a few times for particularly good loads. It paid off yesterday when the only shipper near my drop was a place that is universally hated by drivers. I was resigned to having to go there and mentally preparing myself to dragging three tarps to the top of a 13' load and tarping in 25 mph winds.

Instead of sending me there (40 miles away), he gave me a 220 mile deadhead for a 300 mile no tarp load. I thanked him with extra !!!!s for that!!!

Even with forced dispatch, your relationship with your dispatcher is everything. If you have a good relationship, your dispatcher will know what you really don't like to do and will help you out. I agree with Daniel that it doesn't really matter. What matters is how you handle yourself.

If you can help it you do not want a forced dispatch that mean whether you want to or not they can make you do the load.. Ive only had to turn down 2 loads in the whole time Ive worked here. And only 1 of which was a hard no. But I want the option.

OK, now I"m curious. What warranted the 'hard no?'

Lol, I was due home and they tried to send me on a Northeast regional LtL 5 stopper with appts scheduled so nuts and 4 place that take 6 hours each that I knew there was no way I was making it home on time and would have gotten hung up on 189 miles for 3 days. So that was a hell no not happening. One and only time Ive selected N instead of Y when it asks if you want to commit to preplan.

If you can help it you do not want a forced dispatch that mean whether you want to or not they can make you do the load.. Ive only had to turn down 2 loads in the whole time Ive worked here. And only 1 of which was a hard no. But I want the option.

OK, now I"m curious. What warranted the 'hard no?'

Thanks for the help guys and gals :3

And its not really that it will affect my decision, I've made a list of the company sponsored schools from the list here, and am marking what I do like about it and what I don't.

So I just needed a better understanding of forced dispatch as well as drop and hook. Thank you for the help :3

One last question, what about lease programs?

One last question, what about lease programs?

The general rule is avoid it completley until you have at least a year under your belt. Even then, it is overwhelmingly discouraged on this board. Here is Bretts take:

The Pitfalls Of Leasing A Truck

Truck leasing is one of the very worst things you can do to your trucking career, yet leasing options are available at many trucking companies. Most of the companies that offer a leasing program tend to do everything they can to entice drivers to lease. Why is that? Leasing Puts The Risk On You

Trucking is a risky business. There are breakdowns, potential accidents, economic woes, unintended shut-downs due to weather, and huge fluctuations in the price of shipping freight around the country. Trucking companies absolutely love lease operators because all of this risk is put onto the driver. If a truck breaks down, it’s the driver who loses, not the company.

If you need to shut down because of a snowstorm, it’s you losing money, not the company. As a lease driver, you are extremely valuable to any trucking company. Trucking companies don’t like taking risks, so they pass it along to those willing to take on those risks.

Leasing Puts The Financial Burden On You

Here’s the bottom line; Truck driving is not a profitable business. In fact, moving freight is the lease profitable area for truck driving companies. The most profitable part? Freight brokering. When you lease a truck from a company, the company acts as a middleman. They find freight that needs to be hauled, set up the contracts, and make a ton of money directing others (lease operators) to do the dirty work.

The entire financial burden of actually running the truck and moving the freight is on the lease driver and the company can wash their hands of the sale. That’s a pretty good deal for the company and a real rotten deal for you. No wonder they love lease drivers so much!

Leasing Puts The Mental Stress On You

Lease operators never get rich. While they may have a higher gross salary than company drivers, their net income is almost always lower after making truck payments, paying for fuel, repairs, and other unexpected expenses. Being one breakdown away from financial disaster creates a ton of stress for lease operators.

As a company driver, there is almost no stress. The company tells you where to pick up the freight and where to deliver it. Anything that happens in between is the companies responsibility. If you break down, you’ll actually get paid to sit in a hotel room. So the question begs to be asked; Why take on additional risk and mental stress for no return in additional pay?

Thank you very much Larry. :3

And everyone else as well.

Good Miles to all!

I wouldn't let it be a factor in my decision making. Theres so much bigger and more important things you have to think about. You won't be turning down loads, especially as a rookie. Honestly, you could really dig yourself a deep grave if you use this "power" often.

So I'm going to go against the tide here and say it doesn't matter. If you aren't forced dispatch that's great, if you are that's great too. This isn't something that should even be a factor in your decision.

Daniel,

Thank you Sir, for that response. I was kinda feeling that's how I'd be operating, especially considering I'm the noob driver. I'm not a push-over, but, I surely don't wanna be the one they're gonna roll their eyes at every time they deal with me. I'd rather be the guy they know'll get the job done. Would I get dumped on (handed what would be considered by experienced drivers 'bad' loads)? Probably. But, I'm the new guy, I'd expect it. Maybe it doesn't matter in this line of work, but, I would want the respect of the senior drivers and I'd expect they've 'earned' the good runs. Heck, they're gonna pay me, right? lol...

Thanks to all who're posting the questions and the folks giving us the answers!

SQ TierHog

I've taken every load without complaint, and have thanked my dispatcher quite a few times for particularly good loads. It paid off yesterday when the only shipper near my drop was a place that is universally hated by drivers. I was resigned to having to go there and mentally preparing myself to dragging three tarps to the top of a 13' load and tarping in 25 mph winds.

Instead of sending me there (40 miles away), he gave me a 220 mile deadhead for a 300 mile no tarp load. I thanked him with extra !!!!s for that!!!

Even with forced dispatch, your relationship with your dispatcher is everything. If you have a good relationship, your dispatcher will know what you really don't like to do and will help you out. I agree with Daniel that it doesn't really matter. What matters is how you handle yourself.

Bud...tremendous insight, thank you!

SQ TierHog

I just wanted to add a caveat to the "forced dispatch" thing. Prime is (I'm not trying to sell you on prime just giving an example of something to look for) a 100% forced dispatch for company drivers. However, when they send you a dispatch, they give you all the info as far as how many miles to your pick up and your delivery and dates and times of your appointments at both. Along with that dispatch is a message to "confirm/commit dispatch." This is a yes/no question. When you get your dispatch you need to look at all the info and plan your trip according to how many hours you have available to run. If you don't have the hours available to get to any of your appointments, you can then refuse the commitment to take the dispatch. I've had this happen to me only once (a load I refused) since September and that load was sent by the night shift. Dispatch has your hours in the computer but sometimes will not look at them carefully enough when sending you the dispatch. If you commit to a load you don't have the hours for, you get a nice slap on the hand and it makes you look like a tool. Sometimes on the computer it may look to the dispatcher you have the hours but they aren't always looking at all the factors like: weather on route, traffic times through major cities, construction etc. I'm not going to turn this into a "how to plan your trip" response I simply want to point out you don't HAVE to take a load you can't legally run. It may be forced but they can't force you to run illegal.

This thing about forced dispatch gets way too much concern from rookies in my opinion, and I agree for the most part with how folks have been responding to this question. For some reason those words "forced dispatch" makes it sound like we are going to be constantly doing something or going somewhere we hate. But in reality it is just the way the company tries to make their dispatchers not have to be juggling so many variables on each load - it is a more efficient way to get things accomplished. Some times this just depends on the internal structure of the company or maybe even the software they are using to dispatch drivers with, but it very seldom indicates that you are going to be having to go to New York city every other day, or whatever else nightmarish scenario comes to your mind.

I would not take it into consideration at all when choosing my first company to work for, I think that for the most part you will find it to be a non-issue. They cannot expect you to break the law or the HOS restrictions, and if you can't do something legally you merely have to understand the rules and be able to communicate the problem with your dispatcher , much like what Terry explained.

On the other hand understanding the rules and how to maximize your efficiency is what gets you noticed by the planners and dispatchers. If you can manage to keep yourself available when others are burning up their clock unnecessarily you will become a go to person for the best loads.