Good read taffy , a lot of useful info for anyone thinking of making the move, have you never felt homesick once? Don’t you miss things like the food/t.v etc? It seems like most people made the move once they were a bit older and also a lot have done euro work before, it does sound appealing driving around USA / Canada seeing nice sights etc! I’m only 23 and only have 2 years of driving HGV so still got a lot to learn but like a few people have mentioned they wish they did it when they were younger. What sort of costs were involved if you don’t mind me asking ? Taking money over with you until you got your first pay etc … P.S get the pics up
Smoggie89:
Good read taffy , a lot of useful info for anyone thinking of making the move, have you never felt homesick once? Don’t you miss things like the food/t.v etc? It seems like most people made the move once they were a bit older and also a lot have done euro work before, it does sound appealing driving around USA / Canada seeing nice sights etc! I’m only 23 and only have 2 years of driving HGV so still got a lot to learn but like a few people have mentioned they wish they did it when they were younger. What sort of costs were involved if you don’t mind me asking ? Taking money over with you until you got your first pay etc … P.S get the pics up
Nathan
Nothing stopping you mate. I’m now 28 and had everything organised to come out here at 24 and arrived less than a month after turning 25. I had done 3 years European driving by that time but thats definetely not a requirement in itself, infact most of the drivers from England I work with here had not turned a wheel outside of the UK before coming to Canada. You would need a certain amount of money behind you to come across to sort your self out but if you’re coming by yourself you can basically live in the truck for as long as you want. For the first year and a half I lived in my truck and the company I worked for had bedrooms, shower, kitchen, living room etc at the yard that any of us could use when we came back so renting a place was unnecessary for a single guy like myself.
Smoggie89:
Good read taffy , a lot of useful info for anyone thinking of making the move, have you never felt homesick once? Don’t you miss things like the food/t.v etc? It seems like most people made the move once they were a bit older and also a lot have done euro work before, it does sound appealing driving around USA / Canada seeing nice sights etc! I’m only 23 and only have 2 years of driving HGV so still got a lot to learn but like a few people have mentioned they wish they did it when they were younger. What sort of costs were involved if you don’t mind me asking ? Taking money over with you until you got your first pay etc … P.S get the pics up
Nathan
Nothing stopping you mate. I’m now 28 and had everything organised to come out here at 24 and arrived less than a month after turning 25. I had done 3 years European driving by that time but thats definetely not a requirement in itself, infact most of the drivers from England I work with here had not turned a wheel outside of the UK before coming to Canada. You would need a certain amount of money behind you to come across to sort your self out but if you’re coming by yourself you can basically live in the truck for as long as you want. For the first year and a half I lived in my truck and the company I worked for had bedrooms, shower, kitchen, living room etc at the yard that any of us could use when we came back so renting a place was unnecessary for a single guy like myself.
Like I say I’ve only been driving 2 years so still got a lot to learn I’m 24 in September I’ve got a gf at the moment but if I make the move then ill be single so sleeping in the truck until I find somewhere wouldn’t bother me. How much are we talking to get everything sorted? Between 5-10K ? I’m going to look into it more as the uk pi$$ing me off now and I don’t want to be here all my life. Nathan
How much it cost will depend on the kind of situation you are going into.
I came over at very short notice with very little actual cash. I rented a room in a house for the first few months, bought a car for $1000, and was ‘at work’ within a couple of days. I landed on a Wednesday, sorted bank, car, insurance, car licence, etc on the Thursday, and was in the yard on the Friday having a meet and greet and a bit of an orientation.
I started doing local work on the Monday. I ran with another guy until I passed my test and was paid $10 an hour (weekly) for the pleasure! I had my first pay cheque less than 2 weeks after arriving and within a few weeks I had my licence and was running long haul on my own earning a decent wage.
Sounds great Angela , is there any need for a car straight away or was it just a choice ? Also reference medical how do you set up all that kind of stuff how long etc? Sorry for going off-topic taffy just wanting to get some info regarding the basic/simple things from people who have experienced it first hand cheers
Smoggie89:
Sounds great Angela , is there any need for a car straight away or was it just a choice ? Also reference medical how do you set up all that kind of stuff how long etc? Sorry for going off-topic taffy just wanting to get some info regarding the basic/simple things from people who have experienced it first hand cheers
You dont necessarily need a car right away, I was a few months before I bought one. I came out in 2009 within a few months of about 10 other British and Irish drivers and we all helped each other out as we’d all arrived and being chucked in at the deep end so to speak. If one had a car, he’d let the others use it until they got their own. It will greatly depend on your job though. Living in the truck was easy for me because when I was back at the yard we had all the facilities, showers, laundry, full kitchen and dining area so we did have a base of sorts, even though it wasn’t our own place but it made things easier when we’d come back and be in the yard for a day or two. In that sort of situation you really can come out here with quite little, so long as you’re frugal and dont go and blow it all on beer and things you dont need like a lot o the guys do when they get bored. If you can (or want) to take that route you could come out here with a few thousand pounds at most and have no trouble at all. If you are going to come out here as a single lad, I’d recommend doing it that way as you’ll be making a minimum financial commitment to being here and that way if you dont like it, you can get re-book you return flight date and go back home without having laid down silly money on cars and accomodation.
I paid the company I went to $4000 which sounded a bit steep to begin with but once the flight had being refunded at just under $1200, my work permit at $150 and the fact I was living there so not having to rent a room or an apartment and to begin with they did let us use the works pick up truck, and they paid for all the training and tests to get the truck licence, I really dont think I would have being any worse off than the guys who paid nothing but then have to rent a home, buy a car and sort their own training out. Infact many ended up spending a whole lot more. Outside of that, I came to Canada with $1000 in cash and 4 years later I still have over $200 of that original money in my document case that I never touched. I was working 9 days after arriving in the country and due to living in the truck, saving a shed load of cash. I did have a very healthy bank ballance in the UK to fall back on if needs be but that wasn’t necessary. Like I say, coming out as a single lad, it couldn’t be easier, you can just treat it as an indefinate holiday and just stay if you like it and start putting roots down and spending money on more permanent things at your own convenience.
Smoggie89:
Sounds great Angela , is there any need for a car straight away or was it just a choice ? Also reference medical how do you set up all that kind of stuff how long etc? Sorry for going off-topic taffy just wanting to get some info regarding the basic/simple things from people who have experienced it first hand cheers
You dont necessarily need a car right away, I was a few months before I bought one. I came out in 2009 within a few months of about 10 other British and Irish drivers and we all helped each other out as we’d all arrived and being chucked in at the deep end so to speak. If one had a car, he’d let the others use it until they got their own. It will greatly depend on your job though. Living in the truck was easy for me because when I was back at the yard we had all the facilities, showers, laundry, full kitchen and dining area so we did have a base of sorts, even though it wasn’t our own place but it made things easier when we’d come back and be in the yard for a day or two. In that sort of situation you really can come out here with quite little, so long as you’re frugal and dont go and blow it all on beer and things you dont need like a lot o the guys do when they get bored. If you can (or want) to take that route you could come out here with a few thousand pounds at most and have no trouble at all. If you are going to come out here as a single lad, I’d recommend doing it that way as you’ll be making a minimum financial commitment to being here and that way if you dont like it, you can get re-book you return flight date and go back home without having laid down silly money on cars and accomodation.
I paid the company I went to $4000 which sounded a bit steep to begin with but once the flight had being refunded at just under $1200, my work permit at $150 and the fact I was living there so not having to rent a room or an apartment and to begin with they did let us use the works pick up truck, and they paid for all the training and tests to get the truck licence, I really dont think I would have being any worse off than the guys who paid nothing but then have to rent a home, buy a car and sort their own training out. Infact many ended up spending a whole lot more. Outside of that, I came to Canada with $1000 in cash and 4 years later I still have over $200 of that original money in my document case that I never touched. I was working 9 days after arriving in the country and due to living in the truck, saving a shed load of cash. I did have a very healthy bank ballance in the UK to fall back on if needs be but that wasn’t necessary. Like I say, coming out as a single lad, it couldn’t be easier, you can just treat it as an indefinate holiday and just stay if you like it and start putting roots down and spending money on more permanent things at your own convenience.
sounds like you landed a good job there mate, hopefully i will make the move but it wont be until 2 years time at least, as ive got my car on finance and it gives me more time to save and ill be 25 then so easier for insurance purposes etc… i know everything doesnt go to plan but i would like to land in the country and within a week or 2 have the licence done and dusted and ready to roll, regards to wasting money im not T-total but i dont drink alot very rarely infact so if anything i would be wasting it on food lol, who is it you work for and did you come over to work for them or have you moved on since? cheers for advice appreciate it
Its been a good informative read mate during my process of getting on a panle and travelling here and i wish you all the best with your future career. I see plenty of Hit & Run trucks in and out of our depot here in Regina so if youre in the area ill shout you a coffee
Greeting boys n girls from a dam hot n sunny California. First of all I’m sorry I’ve not been around to answer first hand any questions and thanks to those who have got in touch via facebook. I’m on me crackberry atm so can go back through everything but ill give it a shot when back in Lethbridge next. Been busy sorting out house n car for Mrs truckers arrival around August time.
Been kept busy from one side of the country to the other on team work (yes I thought I would give it a shot) big thanks to Pat for the NY advice and drive as I said on the phone I been there and now you can dam well keep it lol was an experience and I thought euro cities where bad!! Mr Coops thanks for the chats on the phones god bless free calls.
I’m still at H&R and ill be honest they haven’t given me any reason to leave and soon as Mrs Trucker gets here we shall start the PR process. As for the photos oll see what I can sort out maybe ill have to email some over to Pat for him to throw up for me as he spends most of his time in Yonkers waiting to tip lol
Stay safe on the roads and ill post up what I can soon as
So what car are you buying the missus then ? … Not one of those damm Chevy piles of junk I hope
As I mention in the alarm call I gave you on tuesday afternoon, I keep seeing your trucks around the NY area so sooner or later it’s gonna be you my Taffy friend.
Pat Hasler:
So what car are you buying the missus then ? … Not one of those damm Chevy piles of junk I hope
As I mention in the alarm call I gave you on tuesday afternoon, I keep seeing your trucks around the NY area so sooner or later it’s gonna be you my Taffy friend.
No she really likes the F150 so went out and got one lol drives like a dream. yea since brooks got back up and running i think we have a few loads a week head down there so never know Pat.
Well been here a year now so thought best give an update.
What can I say I’ve had a great time and one hell of an experience seen some great sights and met some great people.
I left H&R about a month ago there were several reasons for this but the main one was after I stopped teaming the US my miles dropped big time, after talking to a few people I had found that a lot of drivers felt that as soon as you get your own place the rug was pulled from under your feet for some reason. I found I had to much time sat around waiting for reloads, on one trip it took 4 days for them to get me down to Salt Lake City UT and back up where as should have taken just over 2 so that left me with about 1500 miles for the week and at 40 cents a mile thats not a great deal to pay the bills with, in the end I had to fight to get my hands on a return trip to BC over the weekend just to boost my miles up. I found that yes i was getting 3k mile trips but they was spread over 2 pay days given me bout $500 - $700 take home a week. When you work that out its not enough to cover your out goings for the month and left me in serious trouble and in 2 minds if I should stay or just pack it all up say thanks for the last 12 months and fly back home. Had occasions that I woudl get back from a short trip with something wrong with the truck it would go in the shops come in the next day expecting a run to find out the truck was still shop coded and dispatch had put me on a reset (which with the new laws they cant do) costing me yet more money which I didnt have. If i had a family giving everything up to move over and only me working we wouldnt have been able to live and gone back to the UK a long time ago.
If you like working for a big company and being treated like a truck and not a person, living in the truck and taking resets anywhere then I would say its the place for you. speaking to one driver he goes away for about 3 weeks at a time comes back 3 days off then back out he said he would love to have more time back at base but feels that if he did then he would lose to much money and not worth being here and he looking forward to moving back home later this year.
I dont regret coming over by a long shot and I would do it again in a heartbeat would I come over again for H&R?? very doubtful. They are a great company to get you over here and give you expeiance in North America driving as its a lot different to across europe but for me and a lot of drivers not a long term option, dont get me wrong there are some drivers that have been with them for years and are more then happy but it wasnt for me.
Sorry to some of the guys that have sent me messages on facebook I didnt see they had gone into other messages and I didnt see them
You done the right thing Rich, use them as a stepping stone and move on…
Smart companies like the place you’re at now let H&R go through the process of bringing drivers over, putting them through their test and giving them a bit of experience and then when they found out how it really works over here and leave, they scoop up the drivers.
In some cases the shorter your time with a company like H&R the better it makes you look
I dont know why they cant keep drivers all they gotta do is change a few things and they could be a great company to work for but as you get told on first day by one of the directors ‘we been doing it this was for over 50 yrs so dont think you can change us’ cant remember exact words but to that effect. I got guys who not even got out on the road solo asking if I can get them a job as they been messed around on mentor trips
It works for H&R, like the man said, they ain’t going to change a winning (for them) formula, the way their entire operation is run is geared to customer service.
If a customer in Calgary/Edmonton/ Winnipeg/Toronto/ Vancouver wants a truck in 5mins, H&R can supply one that has a driver or team with an empty log book, there are scores of their units waiting on a load in all of those cities (& more)
The trucks are all leased, the drivers are earning SFA unless the wheels are turning, so the fixed costs remain the same when the truck is parked.
The fresh meat/produce that they haul mostly is a wait, wait, hurry up and wait some more game and H&R play that game very well.
They just go through a lot if drivers in the process, but even that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, drivers get a shot at moving to Canada, companies like Waters get a never ending stream of new drivers to pick and choose from and Mick Fly gets to whine some more about H&R
The Kraut:
Hi taffytrucker,
…
You will soon realize that you waste a lot of time waiting unpaid for loads.
You are new here in this business in Canada and especially at H&R, you will see after a few months that your miles are dropping especially after the XL-Foods facility shut down for operations throughout Canada and the U.S.
It’s your experience what you have now with H&R but I think, it will not last for a long time, so will be aware that you will end in low miles and long waiting times for your next loads.
…
Hi taffy,
it was a question of time to read that it came to an end with H&R.
Wish you all the best for your new job!
