Being an owner-operator has many advantages. It puts you in charge of your truck-driving career. Your truck, your choices of where to go, when to go and what to haul. But it is also more difficult: you have to keep your truck running, find jobs, pay for gas, cover all of your expenses yourself, there is no carrier to do it for you.
Being an Owner-Operator
You long for the life of the open road, sitting behind the wheel of your truck, driving across the country hauling loads far and wide. But you want more than to be just a driver for a carrier, you want to be your boss, and make your own decisions.
Being an owner-operator can have many advantages over driving for a carrier. Owner-operators can make quite a bit more money than they would drive for a company. Many successful owner-operators even go on to buy more trucks and hire their drivers as well, creating their fleets.
But being an owner-operator is much more difficult than merely being a truck driver. When you own your truck, you are in charge of all upkeep of your vehicle. You are in charge of buying gas. You are in charge of all payments to keep you on the road. It can prove to be quite expensive.
Because you don’t just have a job, you have your own business; you also have to pay for many things that usually a carrier would pay for: health coverage, dental coverage, truck insurance, life insurance, workman’s compensation, etc.
Being an owner-operator is a very involved business, far more so than driving a truck. If you want to become an owner-operator, the most important thing is: be prepared. Before you make the step into the world of owning and operating your truck, make sure that you know what you’re doing. You might be a great driver, but to succeed you also have to be a good businessman.
Don’t Jump in Too Fast
A sad fact in the owner-operator world is that many owner-operators can fail or go bankrupt within the first year of running. One of the primary reasons for this is truck breakdowns. When you own your truck, there is no carrier to pay for significant repairs; you have to pay for it yourself.
What happens if the truck you have bought has a significant breakdown and you don’t have the money to pay for the repairs? You can’t make any more money because your truck is out of commission. What are you going to do?
Before deciding to become an owner-operator, it is best to make sure that you have a significant amount of monetary resources to fall back on should something go wrong. Something doesn’t always go wrong. That is the exception to the rule. But if something happens, you need to be prepared, or you could see everything you’ve worked you will lose. There is no safety-net for the owner-operator besides the one you make yourself.
Buying a Truck
One of the most important parts of being an owner-operator is, of course, buying and owning your truck. Trucks can be costly, and you can find that a large part of your profits in your first years on the road as an owner-operator is being eaten up merely paying off your truck.
The first concern when buying a truck is: do I want used or new? Used vehicles are significantly cheaper than purchasing a new truck, but they are also of course used. They’ve already been on the road, and thus have a higher chance of running into mechanical problems. But there are many solid used trucks out there that could work correctly for you.
Take your time in purchasing your new truck. When you buy your vehicle, you are putting your future into the hands of that truck. It is no minor decision; you dedicate your business and your life to this truck. Get the best truck that you can afford, without overstepping yourself and putting yourself in a hole of debt so thick that you can’t climb out of it.
The Lease-Purchase Option
One option that some new owner-operators take is a lease-purchase from a carrier. It is mostly a lease to own program, where the operator leases the truck for a specified period, usually about three years. You must still make a down-payment, but this is generally much smaller than when buying a new vehicle on your own.
At the end of the three years, the operator can either purchase the truck for what is left over between the price of the truck and what he has paid off in the lease. He can switch the truck for another lease truck, or he can sell the truck and keep the difference between the selling price and what he still owes on the truck.
One major problem with the lease-purchase option is that they will often control what loads you take, and besides the basic lease payments made every week, they can often take off money for every mile you drive to pay for maintenance and other costs on the truck.
The advantage of the lease-purchase option is that it allows you to purchase your truck with much less money up-front. But you can find yourself out of control of your vehicle and your own business for the first years of being an owner-operator, being controlled by the carrier from which you lease the truck. While the lease-purchase option might seem like the fast track to success, it is usually better to wait until you have the money for your down-payment and purchase the truck for yourself.
Finding Jobs as an Owner-Operator
Once you have your truck, the essential part of being an owner-operator is, of course, finding jobs.
There are many companies out there who hire owner-operators, and it can take time and patience to find the best one. While generally companies who hire owner-operators will not pay for things such as breakdowns, or gas, or provide other benefits, this is not always the case. Some give quite good benefits, although these can be very difficult to find.
Like everything with becoming an owner-operator, it is essential to do your research. The internet can be an excellent tool for helping you find the best jobs in your new career as an owner-operator.
The internet is a powerful resource in the hunt for jobs. Use it. The web allows you to get information on hundreds of companies from around the country all at your fingertips with the click of a button
In Summary
- Owning and operating your truck can be a very successful career, making you hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
- Before deciding to purchase a truck, save up your money. You don’t just need the money for the down-payment on a truck, but also to cover your initial expenses and an emergency fund.
- Do your research before purchasing a truck. Make sure it is a good one.
- It is usually best to stay away from lease-purchase options. If you are going to go for one, make sure you know what you’re signing before you sign it.
- Look for the best companies to work for as an owner-operator. The internet can be an excellent resource for finding jobs as an owner-operator.