Operated hire prices & rates

[Huwey]

Recently carried out some work for a small sized housing developer.
My original job was price work got the job done in good time, profit was made customer was happy with work so everyone’s happy.

Had a job cancelled so I offered me & my 14ton to stay on site and carry out any jobs they wanted doing. He agreed so I did a week extra for them on an operated hire basis.
We didn’t organise what I was being paid until the week was over for one reason or another (large school boy error)

When the time came I said what I wanted for what I had done. I supplied 14t machine with driver & fuel. He disagreed and told me he could get another larger plant hire company to have done the same for almost a £10 an hour cheaper.

As an owner operator am I completely in the wrong here or is it very hard to stay competitive & actually make any money out of the job. When large plant hire firms can seem to put a machine & man out at the moment for next to nothing seemingly just to cover cost? Another company I do a lot of op-hire for was offered a 21-tonner & driver at £28 pound an hour!? Seems mental to me but I could be completely wrong.

 

[doobin]

Waste of time trying to earn money with a 13t on operated site work day rate hire. Learn and move on.

Always remember this- you can sit at home and make no money without having to get out of bed!

 

[V8Druid]

Recently carried out some work for a small sized housing developer.
My original job was price work got the job done in good time, profit was made customer was happy with work so everyone’s happy.

Had a job cancelled so I offered me & my 14ton to stay on site and carry out any jobs they wanted doing. He agreed so I did a week extra for them on an operated hire basis.
We didn’t organise what I was being paid until the week was over for one reason or another (large school boy error)

When the time came I said what I wanted for what I had done. I supplied 13t machine with driver & fuel. He disagreed and told me he could get another larger plant hire company to have done the same for almost a £10 an hour cheaper.

As an owner operator am I completely in the wrong here or is it very hard to stay competitive & actually make any money out of the job. When large plant hire firms can seem to put a machine & man out at the moment for next to nothing seemingly just to cover cost? Another company I do a lot of op-hire for was offered a 21-tonner & driver at £28 pound an hour!? Seems mental to me but I could be completely wrong.

I'd be guessing that you need to be looking at any compromise you can get above what he's saying your're worth to him, take the money, chalk it up to experience and tell him to never bother you again .. TW*T

 

[Huwey]

We compromised and came to an agreement more then he would normally pay less then I would normally earn. I’ve earned some good money out of day rate stuff before. Just seems recently it’s a lot harder to be competitive!

 

[Storrsy]

Always seen to be the way that you can make decent money out of price work, this could be down to experience, equipment whatever, but divide that same price and present it to the customer in an hourly form and suddenly they squirm. Like everything you generally get what you pay for. And if an extra £10 an hour is too much for them to justify the care, attention to detail and experience you might also bring to the job then sadly probably not the customer for you to he working on day rate.

I do a small amount on day rate with my 8t but if I'm honest for the extra diesel and hassle involved getting it to site id rather stick to price work because the "rates" simply aren't good enough for bigger kit.

 

[JD450A]

You won't compete price wise with a large firm, they won't compete quality wise.

Apples and oranges are both fruit, both have very different tastes.

 

[evanstrev]

So what are 13t owner operator's getting on hourly/day rate, all in or + fuel?

 

[Jimbo69]

So what are 13t owner operator's getting on hourly/day rate, all in or + fuel?

About £36/hour plus fuel round here, Aberdeen.

 

[Storrsy]

So what are 13t owner operator's getting on hourly/day rate, all in or + fuel?

£28 p/hr

 

[Storrsy]

About £36/hour plus fuel round here, Aberdeen.

That's a joke surely!? Why bother!

 

[Stroppymonkey]

So what are 13t owner operator's getting on hourly/day rate, all in or + fuel?

I’m £50 per hour inc fuel. On a 1 Tonne

 

[Lancs Lad]

I'm sat here waiting for Doob

 

[Storrsy]

I'm sat here waiting for Doob

£800 an hour and he's your man

 

[JD450A]

You have to remember, there are classes of Owner Operators, Operators that Own machines. And Businesses Men who run machines.

Lots are happy to supply themselves and a machine to a large firm..... It's usually a 130 or a 210, bells whistles and job security on the whole...... Ultimately very few of these operators are business people, they get there name on the boom and a few more bragging rights along with the ability to be a Owner Operator.

I'm not knocking them, but having known many the reality is they are just employees of there customers with the finance being paid, just..... They might make a couple quid more a hour but nothing earthshattering.

The reason the rates for 130's are s**t is the combination of these operators and the farmer factor...... Everyone wants a 130 and very few actually run full shifts working. The owners get a false sense of how little fuel they use and ultimately it bites them in the arse.

Very few with business acumen will run machines bigger than 7t unless your on price work.

 

[DaveDCB]

When you can get a brand new 13ton on self drive / weeks hire @ £350 it’s not surprising the rates are low!

 

[sjs5060]

Fwiw I don’t have a 130 but if I do cross hire one it’s £520 a day all in & tbh I’m better off going out with a 3 ton @£400 a day

 

[Huwey]

At the end of the day it kept my machine & me busy for another week which is something. I still earned something out of it but thank god I didn’t have a hydraulic pipe go or a breakdown as I wouldn’t have earned F-all. Lesson learned.

 

[DaveDCB]

Biggest thing to take from it is confirm you prices in writing before doing the job.. sounds like the fella would have knocked you down on price regardless of what you charged tbh!

 

[fred]

its crackers but you can earn more from a 1.5 tonner for joe public. block paving pikey gangs make a fortune.

 

[Furniss]

Not sure its surprising ,they weigh the job up and know that when push comes to shove these lads will take and often need to take what amounts to wages.