Question for Bolt drivers

Zoli

Veteran Expediter
Hi. How is Bolt on cargo vans? What is the average amount per mile?Including fuel surcharge.
 

ntimevan

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
I m rolling ,,,,call Anne in recruiting ,,,,remember the grass isn't always greener .....

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sirgregory46

Expert Expediter
You will get the best info from Anne. We work on percentage. So our rate changes with the loads.

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paullud

Veteran Expediter
Even though the rate changes with the load you should still know your overall average.

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purgoose10

Veteran Expediter
The C/Van guys that post on here with locations must be doing okay because they sure don't sit much. Not many of them post but the ones that do seem to stay busy. I have never talked to Anne but everyone says she's straight up about everything, and in this business that speaks volumes.
 

chefdennis

Veteran Expediter
I always did well with Bolt in a CV..well up until the last month, but they realized their mistake after more then a few good drivers left and they corrected their errors...Anne is as honest as you will find, and i often refer people to her. I have also said, that if i was to leave Load 1, I go back to Bolt in a heartbeat...

NOW, that being said, I know that from time to time, they were NOT putting CV's on at all...Call Anne, and don't speak to anyone else...
 

paullud

Veteran Expediter
I'm not sure why Bolt CVers are afraid to answer the question. If a person gets involved with your company thinking .90/mile average is good enough but you are averaging $1/mile you are only hurting yourself. They will just go around you and use the cheaper driver which means you will just keep earning less and less. My average per mile with Bolt is based on driving with them in 2011. I do not have the exact figures with me but during the busy times I was averaging about $1.25/mile. The issue was that once it slowed down the rates were in the toilet and it brought my average down to about .96/mile by the end of October. This was with a husband/wife team in an E350 extended van.

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asjssl

Veteran Expediter
Fleet Owner
Im not afraid...and the statement of them dispatching around you is false.if you are a pain in the azz and cherry pick...well quite possible then....i have been w/ bolt for 4 yrs + and really dont have any complaints.. more i hear what other company's policies are bolt is a cake walk..i avg. Right around $1 p/m in a standard cv. I have been seeing loads above $1 for awhile...the key (as i would think with all companys) is to know who has who by the gonads..paying attention to available vehicles around you... if you are the only available vehicle for 100+ miles.....well you play hardball and your rate goes up...now if your sitting in Detroit well your bargaining leverage isnt as good..negotiating $50 here...$100 there adds up @ the end of the month...not sitting in a bad area..being proactive to move to a better area on your own $$ ..so asking for your avg. Per mile is not the whole picture...i do well with bolt..if i did not i would have left or gone broke by now...

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paullud

Veteran Expediter
Well I certainly wasn't a pain(they never heard from me and I was always on time) and definitely didn't cherry pick(accepted over 90%). They will dispatch around people which you seem to admit they will if they don't like you but then say my claim is false. If they are willing to do that then you have to realize they will also do it when there is someone they like more than you. I have personally seen it happen so I know for sure it goes on. You also have drivers that apparently can't figure out how much they make per mile because they pay a percentage. They ABSOLUTELY DO NOT pay a percentage and how someone can be there for more than a week and not know that is mind boggling. How does 68% of a load constantly end up being an even number like $400 or $300? Beyond that you have drivers taking loads from San Antonio to Laredo for .70/mile so when you don't accept it they don't need to negotiate, which shouldn't be happening anyway based on their claims if paying percentage.

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xiggi

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Im not afraid...and the statement of them dispatching around you is false.if you are a pain in the azz and cherry pick...well quite possible then....i have been w/ bolt for 4 yrs + and really dont have any complaints.. more i hear what other company's policies are bolt is a cake walk..i avg. Right around $1 p/m in a standard cv. I have been seeing loads above $1 for awhile...the key (as i would think with all companys) is to know who has who by the gonads..paying attention to available vehicles around you... if you are the only available vehicle for 100+ miles.....well you play hardball and your rate goes up...now if your sitting in Detroit well your bargaining leverage isnt as good..negotiating $50 here...$100 there adds up @ the end of the month...not sitting in a bad area..being proactive to move to a better area on your own $$ ..so asking for your avg. Per mile is not the whole picture...i do well with bolt..if i did not i would have left or gone broke by now...

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Never did drive for them but by stating you do not have as much bargaining power in a crowded area seems to confirm they will go around you.

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asjssl

Veteran Expediter
Fleet Owner
Never did drive for them but by stating you do not have as much bargaining power in a crowded area seems to confirm they will go around you.

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We are on % so nobody has a set rate to be higher than the next..i found them to be pretty honest by calling properly according to dwell time...i dont see where $$ would play a factor if dispatch calls you or not... what i was saying in places like Detroit you would be told no most likely if asking for more $$ because there are 10 other vans that will do the load for there price...

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Zoli

Veteran Expediter
We are on % so nobody has a set rate to be higher than the next..i found them to be pretty honest by calling properly according to dwell time...i dont see where $$ would play a factor if dispatch calls you or not... what i was saying in places like Detroit you would be told no most likely if asking for more $$ because there are 10 other vans that will do the load for there price...

Pay by %. How do you know how much they get the load? I like more the setting rate.
 

ntimevan

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
I m not putting my average rate per mile on here .....used to do that with miles on loads until someone called in whining abour my rate and my miles...so if someone does like that I m sorry....same reason chef dennis doesn t post his loads and rate on the Load 1 board anymore to many fellow drivers calling John and whining ..... So to answer a simple question ,,,Bolt pays on a percentage...BUT to make it easier for some drivers the dispatchers will have the rate per mile (all in ) figured up before calling you....If you accept the rate or decline it ...is up to you .....roughly its between .85 to $ 1.15 per loaded mile ....SO if you are coming from unbranded company or the big bargain company from Chicago ,,those rates may seem great..BUT then if your coming from Load 1 then those rates Suck ,,,,SO do your homework AND call recruiting if interested ,,otherwise quit whining around about why more Bolt drivers don t respond or post on here....last I looked this was a free site and not a Mandatory post site .....just my 2 cents..

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Turtle

Administrator
Staff member
Retired Expediter
If you get paid by a percentage, then it should be no problem in running by the office and doing an audit of the line haul bills. If they won't let you do that, if they don't have that transparency, then you really aren't getting paid a percentage, you're getting paid whatever they can get away with paying you.
 

ntimevan

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
For me I know what I m getting paid every load before I accept it or decline it ...I know what my opetating costs are and I know what I want per mile ....those who know me and how I run ,,know I don t haul cheap freight and I m not afraid of turning down a load ...as stated on this forum MANY times not every company will suit every one thats why an interested party should contact companys recruiting offices and find out details before coming on here exspecting us drivers no matter the company that we explain every detail of a company....personally I wish BOLT would not take on any vans for 6 months ....but I guess that will never happen..

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paullud

Veteran Expediter
Pay by %. How do you know how much they get the load? I like more the setting rate.

They call and tell you we have a run going 500 miles and we can offer you $1/mile if they have way more money in it and are screwing you on the percentage. Sometimes they call and ask how much you will do it for to see how much they can get from the load. If you listen to what the dispatchers say you quickly realize you are not working on percentage.

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paullud

Veteran Expediter
If you get paid by a percentage, then it should be no problem in running by the office and doing an audit of the line haul bills. If they won't let you do that, if they don't have that transparency, then you really aren't getting paid a percentage, you're getting paid whatever they can get away with paying you.

If the drivers bothered doing that I wondered how many will find their loads were brokered through Bolt's own brokerage called Lightning Logistics. I am completely amazed at the fact that the drivers there haven't figured out the whole percentage claim is a complete lie. How is it possible that every single offer comes to numbers like 200, 225, or 250? When it comes through on the QC it might say line haul $189.87 and then fuel surcharge $60.13 but it always adds up to be a round number. They aren't adding it up for you, they take a guess at what they can get away with then just toss the numbers in the category they need to.

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ntimevan

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Paul ,,maybe that was the case with you and the dispatchers before ,, but with me the only time my load offer comes out to even money is WHEN I negotiate UP to an even figure....This is my point about Bolt there not for everyone....some like them,,,some like you didn t,,,,,

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