I just had my first big problem with the cat that is about money. not big money but still money. I got load dispatched on to pick up in louisville and im in georgetown 60 miles out. im heading that way and get call load cacancelled. ok I got load at 455 then it said pick up was ready so im going to get it 45 miles down the road dispatch calls the place said they would be closed so loads a no go. well they didnt give a dry run no first out or nothing really **** me off!
Did it **** you off enough to call Driver Relations and ask why, after being told "it's ready now" that you aren't getting paid the for the dry run? The scheduled pickup time becomes instantly irrelevant when Dispatch states "it's ready now" because you are moving on Dispatch's explicit instructions.
If that "it's ready now" is on the recording, then I'd get my dry run pay out of them, and I'd make my wheel the squeakiest wheel they've ever heard until I did.
Panther dispatchers have a really nasty habit of saying "it's ready now" when it's not ready at all, and they don't have a clue whether it's ready or not. They tell you that because they want you there...NOW, and if you have to wait for hours until the scheduled pickup time it's no hair off their butt because detention doesn't start until two hours after the scheduled time. So if they can talk you into arriving early, even way early, they are assured that you are there when the time comes. One less thing for them to worry about.
When you ask them why they told you it was ready now and it's not, the answer is a familiar one, "The customer said it's ready now," which is complete and utter BS, because most of the time the customer doesn't know, either.
I had cases where, for example, they'd call me at noon for a 1600 pickup, and say "It's ready now," and I'd go over to the pickup at 1300 and the shipper hasn't even started building the parts, yet. It'll be ready by 1600, tho!
In dispatch's mind they've got me there already, so I'll definitely be there for the 1600 pickup. Everything's just fine. Then I call, and it's not so fine. "Either pay me detention starting now, or get me off this load, because I was lied to about the terms and conditions of the load and I don't want it anymore." They'll say, they were just going by what the customer told them. Yeah, well, that's their problem, between them and the customer, not me or my problem.
If they gave me very much crap over it, the next thing I'd say is, "All this trouble has stressed me out to the point where
I'm tired and I need a break." Them's the magic words, because THAT'S on the recording, too, and that phrase triggers a very specific response. It's amazing how quickly than can find some detention money for you, or find someone else to do the load. It's an especially effective technique when you know there's no one around to make the pickup time.
I also, quite often, would tell them after hearing, "It's ready now," that that's great, but if I get there and it's not ready now, then I don't want the load, so you need to make sure that it is in fact ready now, or, pay me detention from the time I arrive until the pickup time.
While the reason for them playing such silly games is understandable (people will have a few hours lead time for a pickup and then go to sleep and oversleep and be late, or go do something else along the way and lose track of time and be late), it's still a silly game, played in their favor. If they're going to play games like that, then play them right back, but always in your favor. You don't want to play those games just to be difficult, but when they leave you little choice (play the game right back or be steamrolled), there ya go.
I never once failed to get dry run or detention pay that I was due.
