Prices to charge

Hi everyone,

As i am new to the courier business I would like to ask advice. I am looking at joining this site in the very near future and don't want to over/undercharge when i place in bids. I have looked at other sites (Shiply, AnyVan etc) and the prices people bid is financially unworkable, in my opinion. i.e. someone bid £28 for a 300(ish) mile journey! I understand that they may be filling their van because they are "going that way anyway".

Do you guys charge by the mile? If so what is a good costing - 70p to £1? I am getting a van next month and I understand that you have to factor in maintenance, insurance etc. I don't want to put a bid in and look a right idiot because i "don't have a clue".

Any help would be appreciated :-)

Small van 70-75p per mile, big un £1 per mile... should do the trick.

Even as important tho is how quickly you bid and where you are in relation to the pick up.

Many think they've lost out to price but have in fact bid too late and/or are further away than the winning bid.

Thanks for the reply, I wasn't sure what to charge to be honest. I am looking at buying a van within the next week and it is a "big un" :-)

The best way to work out what to charge is to find out your costs!

Van cost including servicing tyres etc per day

• insurances
• advertising/website subs
• accountants fees
• FUEL (mortgage required)
• theoretical 8 hour (ha ha)
• divide by cost by 50 miles an hour will give you your cost

LWB van, based on a 5 day week (ha ha)

• £200 lease/rent per month = £9.20+vat per day (assuming servicing is included)
• fuel based on 30mpg =£8.32 per hour x8 £66.56+vat
• insurances based on= £1500 £5.75 per day
• subs mtvan/CX/AA/RAC etc = £3.55+vat
• accountants fees £2.00+vat
• telephones/broadband £2.00+vat
• cost per mile 0.23p
• allowing for no return loads an out bound will cost you 0.46+vat ppm
• then you add your wages say £8.00 an hour would make that 0.72ppm
• if your rental agreement does not include servicing etc then you will need to add this cost also.

... this is based on 8 hours a day 5 days a week, but you never know, you will need to factor in the wasted time waiting for the power crazed Nazi on the fork lift who if you upset then you get unloaded last (you meet a few of those!!)

So I would keep your overheads as low as possible!!

Hope this helps.

If you look back over the last 3 months, you will see a trend.

Work up to Christmas was down, few people have made any money so far this year, even to cover day to day costs. The outlook is very bleak.

And the pence per loaded mile is slipping lower.

Take yours projected figures for the year , then work them over 8 month's and you'll have a realistic idea. Then whatever you spend on a used van, put the same a side as reserve.

Assume that no one pays earlier than 8 weeks, that you will lose 10% of all moneys made, just because you are new to the game, and business's fold without paying.

That's a realistic scenario. And you will have a realistic pplm to charge. Which no one will pay. If you know London, then you can earn £12.50 per hour, moving Olympians around in a 5 series BMW, for 6 months. easy money.

All good advice H but somewhat depressing lol. My only advice would be that whatever site you join do NOT use the site as your main source of income only to be used for backloads or co loads. call it beer money if you like so if you do ever get a back load you should of already earned your money on the original job. so when you get home go down the pub and enjoy a pint from the fruits of your extra labour.

Arh. that'll be me tonight. Swan and Rushes in leicester. A few pints of Oakham ales JHB.

The guidance and rules ,and gossip and professional advice you take all count. But if you are the main breadwinner in your home, don't do it. Not in this economic climate.
Go find any job paying minimum wage. You will earn more in your takehome pocket than you will tradeing in your first year of business.

LWB/XLWB vans - 80-90p per loaded mile, I wouldnt go under that its important to make money in this industry not just be doing a job to be out the house. If people want to charge less then fair play, however to upkeep vans pay insurance etc they will find it hard going in the future.  Anyvan / shipley is great for the quiet times, however price accordingly - but if you work it out and get a decent run going which brings in 4-5 jobs you can soon be up to the so called hotshot rate if not more.

I take a few jobs off anyvan/shiply, coupe them together so it works out a better rate & pay quite well in these quite times & it's cash in hand

Speed Couriers Nationwide said:

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samll van 70-75p per mile, big un £1 per mle...should do the trick

Does that go for swb as well as lwb, im in small van anyway and have my price, but i'm just curious

Depends where you are and what the competition is doing but anything from 80p to a £1 seems about right to me.

There'll always be those that won't pay it tho, but who'd want to work for them?

Springer Express Couriers said:

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The best way to work out what to charge is to find out your costs!Van cost including servicing tyres etc per dayinsurances,advertising/website subs,accountants fees,FUEL (mortgage required)theoretical 8 hour (ha ha)divide by cost by 50 miles an hour will give you your cost,LWB van, based on a 5 day week (ha ha)£200 lease/rent per month =£9.20+vat per day (assuming servicing is included)fuel based on 30mpg =£8.32 per hour x8 £66.56+vatinsurances based on= £1500 £5.75 per daysubs mtv CXAA/RAC etc     =  £3.55+vataccountants fees         £2.00+vattelephones/broadband £2.00+vat cost per mile 0.23pallowing for no return loads an out  bound will cost you 0.46+vat ppmthen you add your wages say £8.00 an hour would make that 0.72ppmif your rental agreement does not include servicing etc then you will need to add this cost also.this is based on 8 hours a day 5 days a week, but you never know,you will need to factor in the wasted time waiting for the power crazed nazi on the fork lift who if you upset then you get unloaded last (you meet a few of those!!)  so I would keep your overheads as low as possible!!hope this helps.

£8 an hr wages for self employment you are avin a larf aint ya

You might as well go and work for tesco... Who the hell in their right mind would go through what we do for that sort of money

PB Express said:

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Springer Express Couriers said:

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The best way to work out what to charge is to find out your costs!Van cost including servicing tyres etc per dayinsurances,advertising/website subs,accountants fees,FUEL (mortgage required)theoretical 8 hour (ha ha)divide by cost by 50 miles an hour will give you your cost,LWB van, based on a 5 day week (ha ha)£200 lease/rent per month =£9.20+vat per day (assuming servicing is included)fuel based on 30mpg =£8.32 per hour x8 £66.56+vatinsurances based on= £1500 £5.75 per daysubs mtv CXAA/RAC etc     =  £3.55+vataccountants fees         £2.00+vattelephones/broadband £2.00+vat cost per mile 0.23pallowing for no return loads an out  bound will cost you 0.46+vat ppmthen you add your wages say £8.00 an hour would make that 0.72ppmif your rental agreement does not include servicing etc then you will need to add this cost also.this is based on 8 hours a day 5 days a week, but you never know,you will need to factor in the wasted time waiting for the power crazed nazi on the fork lift who if you upset then you get unloaded last (you meet a few of those!!)  so I would keep your overheads as low as possible!!hope this helps.

£8 an hr wages for self employment you are avin a larf aint ya

You might as well go and work for tesco... Who the hell in their right mind would go through what we do for that sort of money

Come on Paul £8.00 an hour is more than enough to run a 10 year old knackered van with no insurance.

Van? I thought we was using our own cars nowadays

Didnt you do your costing in your business plan before starting out?

As had been said subcontractor and work off here is usually going to be 80ppm to £1 per mile. Depending on what van you get your looking at about 28mpg. Factor your fuel at atleast a tank of fuel per day so 80-100 litres per day. Minimum. This is going to be your biggest on going cost. Try to find some regular local multidrop work would be my advice. Fuel use is a lot less and youll earn regular money which is at moment is the name of the game

Speed Couriers Nationwide said:

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samll van 70-75p per mile, big un £1 per mle...should do the trick

Sounds fair and workable for most I would of thought.

Depends what you need to survive on (not live). I have worked for 50pplm (better than sat on me ass) but then again I worked for 131.0pplm. Pride is a wonderful thing but ya know what comes after. Just do what suits you best. I respect the guys what have been couriers for years and have plenty of their own customers. The newbies need to do the ground work and build their own little empires. Having done this job on an off for a few years I still have lots to learn. As I have muted before Business Plans are a good tool but they dont get ya work. OOoooops did I write all that, sorry guys not my usual style.

I mainly do small van jobs myself and i have my price that i never budge from. Some do try and get me lower but it just won't happen. But i think this is just business and we are all in business at the end of the day. But i see it as if you start reducing your rate, then they will still want it even lower and then you will be working for peanuts.

Plenty of "retail work " coming I've heard

Hi WE PAY £1 PM FOR A SWB TRANSIT & £1.10/£1.20 FOR SPRINTERS HOPE THIS HELPS MATE AND GOOD LUCK ITS HARD OUT THERE

Hmmmm should I relocate to staines.

Must admit I have had some right comedy quotes on here the last few days! Debating whether or not to renew the Pro or not,

BusinessBuddy said:

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Hmmmm should I relocate to staines.

You've not long been in leigh lol

I would say that its just as important as a sub-contractor before coming in to this business to find out what companies do pay ppm rather than just work out what you need to earn ppm, as the two figures may be quite different. There is no point working out you need 1.20 per mile,get your van and cant get more than 1.00 per mile as 20pplm will make alot of difference over a month/year.Luckily there are sites like this that have people willing to give good advice. If you work your costs/earnings taking the lowest figure of the average rate achievable, if you can make what you want from that then you should be ok.

East-Lancs Sameday Couriers Ltd said:

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BusinessBuddy said:

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Hmmmm should I relocate to staines.

You've not long been in leigh lol

If you live in leigh make sure you park you van in a locked garage overnight.

AJM sameday Couriers said:

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East-Lancs Sameday Couriers Ltd said:

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BusinessBuddy said:

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Hmmmm should I relocate to staines.

You've not long been in leigh lol

If you live in leigh make sure you park you van in a locked garage overnight.

Yes i agree with that. Mine got broke into last year and it was on my driveway. They cut the bodywork around the lock on the passenger door- cheeky b*****ds

If you live in leigh make sure you park you van in a locked garage overnight. Its on spare land for anyone to have a go at. Have a right cushty job today, thought this is a right little earner off to Rhodesia, what a let down its only near bloody Worsop grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Worksop. Excitement got the better of me.

I want to know where you can lease or rent a big van for £200 a month? As soon as you mention the mileage that you are going to be doing the price will double or in some cases even triple that amount!

Bennetts Distribution said:

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I want to know where you can lease or rent a big van for £200 a month? As soon as you mention the mileage that you are going to be doing the price will double or in some cases even triple that amount!

Try northgate, there prices are about the lowest i've come across so far

Bennetts Distribution said:

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I want to know where you can lease or rent a big van for £200 a month? As soon as you mention the mileage that you are going to be doing the price will double or in some cases even triple that amount!

You will be lucky to find a big van for that price per month

BusinessBuddy said:

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Worksop. Excitement got the better of me.

This has made me right giggle!

Courier Exchange getting worse for pricing, they either want it done at backload rate or want it done for peanuts. I've quoted about 15 jobs on there so far today and not a sniff.

"As soon as you mention the mileage that you are going to be doing the price will double or in some cases even triple that amount!"

Just get a friendly mechanic mate to unplug the speedo!

Queensburyvan hire in Halifax best deal weve found

East-Lancs Sameday Couriers Ltd said:

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Courier Exchange getting worse for pricing, they either want it done at backload rate or want it done for peanuts. I've quoted about 15 jobs on there so far today and not a sniff.

It's been like that for the last 5 years or so.

LwsExpress transport solutions said:

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East-Lancs Sameday Couriers Ltd said:

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Courier Exchange getting worse for pricing, they either want it done at backload rate or want it done for peanuts. I've quoted about 15 jobs on there so far today and not a sniff.

It's been like that for the last 5 years or so.

Most people want work for peanuts, what needs to happen is a few people need to make some balls up, then they might think about paying decent prices, if people cocked up with these 50-60 pence a mile jobs and upset some of there customers, harsh I know but these guys need a reality check.

The guys willing to work for 50p per mile also need a reality check.

Its been said time and time again, you choose what rate to work at. Nobody is forced to work at 50 p per mile

Speed Couriers Nationwide said:

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samll van 70-75p per mile, big un £1 per mle...should do the trick

For my 10c worth...

If you swork on these prices you will starve to death and your house will be repo'd

S.E.X.I. said:

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Speed Couriers Nationwide said:

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samll van 70-75p per mile, big un £1 per mle...should do the trick

For my 10c worth...

If you swork on these prices you will starve to death and your house will be repo'd

I see where you are coming from, but i can honestly say that i do not personally know a courier company that pays more than £1 per mile for a big van. I know several who pay £1 per mile and im sure there are those that pay more but ive not come across them. If you are going from base to collection to drop and back to base again every job then i think it would be tight but with the exchange sites now, you have to use them properly and be very flexible whether its waiting for a back load or doubling up etc or going from hotshot to hotshot and not going home. In an ideal world you should get the correct rate and anything else on top is a nice bonus but unfortunately we dont live in an ideal world.

I put a job on here last. Some if the quote where just ridiculous. 28 miles for LWB van, got quoted £2.67 pplm, what kind of world are these people living in, with prices like that. I didn't even charge my customer that amount.

Had a phone call a few week a go from a company. For a 10 mile job gave price of under £9 all in and no call back

Was talking to a fellow driver last week who tells me that if you deliver BT parts for Rico the rate is an incredible 39pplm!

H-Hour Courier Services said:

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Thanks for the reply, I wasnt sure what to charge to be honest. I am looking at buying a van within the next week and it is a "big un" :-)

Wouldnt you have done all this in your business plan?

I've worked out my running costs/ overheads/depreciation for a combo and the pplm required allowing for a minimum wage income at an average of 37mph (off sat nav includes london work) loading time not included is about 85pplm doing 50k miles a year. As it is difficult/impossible to get more than 80pplm as a subby life is a struggle!

Been considering whether to go for a 3.5t sprinter any pointers as to the amount of work around and rates obtainable appreciated.

AM-PM Despatch said:

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I've worked out my running costs/ overheads/depreciation for a combo and the pplm required allowing for a minimum wage income at an average of 37mph (off sat nav includes london work) loading time not included is about 85pplm doing 50k miles a year. As it is difficult/impossible to get more than 80pplm as a subby life is a struggle!

Been considering whether to go for a 3.5t sprinter any pointers as to the amount of work around and rates obtainable appreciated.

I tend to do LWB van jobs these days. I get most of my subby work from Courier Exchange as there doesn't seem to be much for my area on this site anymore. If your a member of Courier Exchange, there is always work all size vans. I've not regretted joining. I do still get the odd job from this site, but not as much since I now drive a LWB van

Darren. Do you think there's more profit in running a LWB as opposed to a small van? Any downsides like extra lifting, loading times etc? I'm considering "upsizing" too.

RGM Courier Services said:

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Darren. Do you think there's more profit in running a LWB as opposed to a small van? Any downsides like extra lifting, loading times etc? I'm considering "upsizing" too.

Have a long hard think about it at your age.

Good point Gary. That's why I was asking about extra lifting. Maybe it's not such a good idea!

RGM Courier Services said:

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Good point Gary. That's why I was asking about extra lifting. Maybe it's not such a good idea!

Problem I have found with lwb vans is when you get to a lot of places and there are quite a few vehicles delivering you have to get in a queue, normally small van is 1 package or 1 box just nip in and your off, same with loading.

You quote a price that works for you. You cannot expect to get every job you quote for, and there are many reasons why a quote is unsuccesful and it's not always as simple as price.

Many assume it is, and therefore go in lower next time, and lower still, until you're at a price that isn't workable.

I get many quotes after the job has been sold, some higher, some the same, and some lower.

Generally speaking, due to the nature of our work, i will go for the nearest. Others, who may have more time for the collection and delivery will go for the cheapest.

Never assume its always down to your price being too high

It may be that you got the text alert a lot later than others did and you're just too late

£200 lease/rent per month = £9.20+vat per day (assuming servicing is included)

And I thought I had a good deal at £80 + Vat? [thats a small van]

Where can I get this deal.