Below you’ll find answers to the questions we get asked the most from new Owner Operators.
As a leased on Owner Operator, one very important part of being a business owner is knowing how to compare apples to apples. At Circle we try to make things as painless and easy as possible, for everyone involved. That includes our accounting and settlements dept. Less deductions means less time spent on settlements every week & less mistakes. We have compared the bottom line to other companies paying a higher percentage rate and have discovered that it all comes out in the wash, one way or another. Other companies that boast a higher percentage rate often charge you back for trailer rental and cargo and liability insurance, we do not. Those things are provided as part of our percentage with no extra cost to the contractor. In short, we take it out of the front end instead of the back end like many other companies. Also, quite often companies paying a higher percentage rate are working strictly off of broker boards which includes a middleman taking a cut of the pay. At Circle Transportation our goal is to always get you back to a direct customer which means higher rates, without the middleman. That requires more man power, work and effort on our part.
It’s important to know that we have 2 different divisions, “Circle Logistics” is our Brokerage division and “Circle Transportation” is our Transportation division and comprised solely of leased on, owner operator, asset trucks. Most of the reviews you see on our Circle “Logistics” Google page are from outside carriers, with their own authority. They are NOT leased on contractors that are running under Circle Transportation’s authority. Unfortunately, negative reviews from outside carriers in brokerage is very common. Researching other brokerage companies and comparing comments will shed light on that. Some carriers are very quick to leave negative reviews when things are less than perfect with a load, even if it’s not the company’s fault. The company’s side of the story is rarely told. As much as we wish we had a perfect, flawless trucking world in brokerage, that’s just not the case. Customer needs, cancellations & issues are all part of moving freight and we do our best to keep that as smooth as possible for all involved. If there is an issue that was not solved by our brokerage team, carriers are always encouraged to call our corporate office for a resolution.
Yes, we allow 2 hours daily for personal conveyance to our leased on contractors.
Nonforced dispatch is exactly that. Contractors leased on to Circle Transportation absolutely have the right to go home whenever they want, without repercussions. However, unless you’re doing this for fun, home time has to be balanced out with making money. If we do not have enough or the kind of direct customer freight in your area to support being home as often as you’d like, without cutting into your revenue, it would be a waste of time on our part and yours to lease you on. Example: contractor wants daily home time but the only freight we have to offer in their area is an average of 600 mile lanes, 600 miles out and 600 miles back would not provide daily home time. In areas where there is no direct customer freight and we have to rely on brokered loads to get you out, it is suggested that you stay out a little longer so that you’re not taking a cut to your revenue by taking brokered loads as often. The less brokered loads you have to rely on, the better. Home time is just a suggestion and what type of freight we have in your area is what dictates that suggestion.
You can use your current physical as long as you have at least 90 days left on it before it expires. If it expires within 90 days, you will be required to acquire a new one at the clinic of your choice before being leased on with Circle Transportation. Circle does not pay for physicals. We do pay for drug screens and truck inspections, as long as the inspections are passed the 1st time through.
Circle takes full responsibility for maintenance on trailers that are provided by us, except in the case of obvious abuse by the contractor, whether intentional or unintentional.
No, you will not be “punished”. Our dispatchers do their best to find you good paying freight & keep you in the areas that you like to run. However, we are not travel agents. We are at the mercy of what type of freight is available in the area that you are in. If there is no freight that matches up with your parameters, we have no choice but to wait until something comes available that matches your criteria. We have several contractors to keep busy. If a contractor is refusing load after load, sometimes there is no option other than moving on to the next contractor, getting them loaded and moving so that we can revisit the contractor that is waiting for something better and seeing if anything is available yet. There is no such thing as “favorites”, there are contractors that are flexible and easy to work with and contractors that are more difficult. Being easy to work with is always the best route in order to ensure good revenue.
This entirely depends on you as the contractor. In order for a dispatcher to pretrip and have loads waiting for you when you drop another load off, they need good and constant communication from you. The last thing we want to do is give a load back to a customer because our contractor did not make it by the pickup time. If you are trusted as an on time contractor, communicate with your dispatcher regularly about estimated arrival time & issues along the way, it makes it easier to pretrip you. If you have several service failures, drop out of communication often & do not warn us of issues, we cannot pre-trip and book loads ahead of time due to not knowing when you’ll be able to pick the next load up.