Before you jump into the arms of another truck carrier, we want to suggest three items you should review to help predict how a new business relationship might work. The items to do are:

Review the Owner/Operator Contract
The contract you are offered sets out the relationship you would have with your trucking carrier. Why not ask for a copy in advance? The carrier is interviewing you as a perspective driver to see if you meet their hiring criterion. As a good business person, you should being interviewing the trucking company to ensure they meet your criterion. After all, long term relationships are built on win/win scenarios.

You should be telling the carrier that you wish to have your business advisors review the contract prior to signing. If the carrier refuses to produce a contract for review, we suggest this is a prime indicator that the carrier does not regard their owner/operators as business people. You may wish to strike them off your shortlist.

If you are a Canadian resident, and wish to participate in our free contract review service, check out our Education Page. Click here for further information.

Review the Compensation Package
In the end, trucking is about making money. Do you have the business planning tools to determine if the compensation package being offered will properly compensate you?

Most owner/operators learn by trial and error. This may have worked in past, but with today’s high and volatile fuel prices, you can be out of business very quickly if you don’t know the rate you need to be hauling for today to make a go of it. With fuel prices at 72 cents per litre, you had better know how things will work out, IN ADVANCE.

For a limited time only, TBC Group is providing a free service in using our "Owner/Operator Business Calculator". Contact us by e-mail, give us the information we need, and we will send back to you a projected result at today’s fuel prices.

Let us know the following:

• Truck make and year
• Number of paid miles driven per month
• Insurance cost per month
• List of other expenses you are responsible for
• Your full name, address and telephone number so we may get back to you.

When you hire on to a trucking company, you tie your financial future with theirs. The way the trucking company complies with the safety regulations is a key indicator how it will deal with its owner/operators. A company with a poor safety record will cost you money. Why?

• If a company is operating outside the rules, it is costing them money in fines. A poorly managed company is tempted to download its costs. An owner/operator can become the easy target.
• A poor safety record results in higher insurance costs, which can be passed onto the owner/operator in a number of ways. You may be asked to pay excessive insurance rates, and/or be exposed to very high insurance deductibles. We are seeing some companies offer insurance with $25,000 deductibles! Of course, all carriers impose a deductible to discourage claims, and that is OK if you are a safe driver. The fleet insurance rate has to be protected from negligent drivers. However, there is a limit to what is reasonable. Incidentally, if you don’t have deductible buydown coverage, click here to buy it down to $1000!
• A poor safety record is often the result of unsatisfactory dispatching practices. Rushed loads can cost you a lot of money if you are forced to drive faster than 100 km/hr! With today’s fuel prices, you would have to be hauling for a very high rate to compensate you for a 5 mile per gallon fuel consumption rate!

• Show me the "Excellent" rated carriers
• Show me the "Unsatisfactory" rated carriers

Disclaimer
The information provided on carrier ratings is a public document produced by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario. TBC Group accepts no liability regarding either its accuracy or the interpretation of the information provided. It is the responsibility of users of this site to learn how the MTO ratings were derived, and then draw their own conclusions.