When was the last time you went to eat at a large restaurant? If you visited one of the many large chains across the USA (and increasingly, all over the world), then odds are you might have been issued a pager to alert you to when a table became available for you. But why are [...]
The vast majority of people working in the courier business are pretty straightforward types who are fully law-abiding. However, the main tool of our trade is our bike/car/van or wagon and that sometimes causes us a few issues.
For clarity at the outset, this article does not advocate ‘special treatment’ for the courier or their exemption [...]
There are many accounts of paging systems used to great effect during disaster or emergency scenarios by a wide range of organisations. Where would doctors be without a trusty pager to alert them to sudden medical developments? Could the police and fire services be so quickly alerted to any impending catastrophe without the bleep of [...]
If you’re just starting work as a courier, you may find the following guide useful. That’s because it is a secret and mysterious world, alongside which, the contorted secret societies outlined in the Da Vinci Code simply pale into insignificance. So, to help, this article hasn’t been hidden in a secret code-locked cylinder or written [...]
Some jobs just ooze opportunity to flaunt yourself and show off your latest togs but sadly that’s rarely the case for the courier.
Showcasing
OK, not everybody’s made the same, either physically or psychologically. Even so, some jobs give the opportunity to ‘strut your stuff’ and look good in clothes that also proudly proclaim your profession. Let’s [...]
Many at the ‘sharp-end’ of the courier business have seen it. In fact, sometimes it’s more of a sixth-sense than anything else. It’s that sinking feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you arrive somewhere to make a delivery and you just KNOW it’s all going to go pear-shaped.
The warning signs
One of [...]
When we hear a rap at the door and see a courier standing there with a parcel we often take the delivery work that he’s carried out for granted. That hour-long traffic jam he’s sat through on the A40 and the tepid coffee he sipped at a motorway service station all seem pretty inconsequential as [...]
Sometimes, choosing the right method for delivery work is just as important as choosing the jobs you undertake. After all, there’s no sense in becoming a bicycle messenger if you’re planning to be delivering heavy items such as computers or furniture. And a large, sturdy van probably might not be the best choice for rapid, [...]
In the haulage business you can find, well, let’s say ‘challenges’ along the entire chain. Securing the business, collecting, shipping and the delivery work, can all leave you sometimes wondering if you’ve your own personal gremlin on your shoulder. Take delivery work as a classic example. Now in theory, delivering something should be a breeze. [...]
For a courier engaged in delivery work within the UK, the rules of the road are clear-cut. Drivers know the rules they have to follow, and (for the most part) conform to them. Couriers can focus on finding their way to an unfamiliar destination, or on taking extra care when loading or [...]
Now before you panic, this isn’t going to be some huge academic analysis by an eminent historian of courier services and/or technology! It’s a light-hearted and affectionate stroll through the early technology that arrived in the transport and related industries back in the 1960s and 70s. If you’re above about 45 [...]
When you’re out and about while doing important delivery work, it may seem as if your top priority is to be reliable and efficient when getting to your destination. However, there are some drivers out there who take a different stance to a driver’s priorities – mainly that the biggest priority is looking good! Whether [...]
When you’re in the middle of choosing, or working on courier jobs there are some situations you definitely want to avoid. How do old couriers pass on their years of accumulated wisdom to the younger generation of up-and-coming hotshots? Through legions of jokes and humourous stories about the perils of driving and courier jobs! We’ve [...]
Courier jobs by their very nature demand a lot of time on the road away from home. For many, it’s one of the main reasons they go into the job in the first place. All that time to yourself, not having to be stuck in an office and the freedom of the open road can be [...]
There’s a balance to be struck when it comes to driving while tired, working as a courier. Jobs may require you to keep driving for long periods each day, as well as during late hours when most other drivers will be safely in bed. Of around 23,000 crashes a year, 2,300 of them are thought [...]
Spending much more time on the road than the average driver, it is arguably not surprising that a courier might have to put in the odd insurance claim here and there. However the amount of driving they do also gives them a great deal of scope for some of the most interesting and amusing insurance [...]
It’s fair to say that while England’s roads aren’t as dangerous as some roads in other countries, it’s still important to take care when carrying out delivery work.in the United Kingdom; particularly if you find that your current day’s deliveries are taking you to the county of Derbyshire where the majority of all the UKs [...]
No matter what job you end up in, there is always some kind of secret ‘industry language’ you’ll have to try to decipher. By the time you get your head around all the jargon and insider jokes you may think you’ve landed on another planet. Courier work is no exception and you will come across [...]
The UK haulage business is competitive, and nowhere is this seen more than in the area of returnloads.
A refresher course
Just in case you’ve been living a very sheltered life during your time in the business, returnloads are all about trying to make a living. The basic idea is that it’s pretty much commercial suicide to [...]
Speak to any truckdriver and you’ll probably find someone who more often than not takes his work home with him. No, we don’t mean he pulls up outside his house with his truck still full (although with a returnloads this may well be the case); it’s just that a truck driver tends to eat, sleep and [...]
They say like mother like daughter and like father like son, and this is often the case within the haulage industry, as many children take after their parents and get behind the wheel at the first possible opportunity. So, get them interested and thinking about deliveries and returnloads while they’re still young with the help of [...]
Are you looking for new ways to differentiate your courier business? If you are, maybe the best way to make yourself stand out is with a new number plate. Every car on the road might have one, but somehow we always remember the personalised ones. So if you want to get yourself out there, then [...]
If you’ve ever dreamed of starting your own business, and you love driving, then becoming a courier is the obvious choice for you. As long as you have a clean licence and are in relatively good health, it is an occupation that doesn’t discriminate against age, gender, religion or even size. However, size IS an issue [...]
If you’re feeling a bit tired and jaded, why not have a smile with a few haulage work stories. Believe it or not – all of these are true!
The grand tour
The poor shipping clerk sitting at his desk was desperately trying to explain to an irate client why their trailer load of critically important Italian [...]
Taking on courier jobs for a living can be an extremely rewarding and profitable profession. Of the many advantages of this type of work, the most obvious are the diversity, the ability to earn a good day’s pay for a good day’s work and, perhaps the most attractive perk of all, the independence and freedom [...]
No disrespect intended, but driving for haulage companies is a bit like being a snail…you take your home around with you wherever you go. It might not be your real home, but it certainly gets to feel that way when you spend so many hours in the cab. You might not be able to get [...]
Traditionally, the trucking industry has been a man’s world, and transport contracts have seldom been entered into by females. But it is now the 21st century, and it is important to remember that women are not only entitled to, but actually increasingly do, work in the haulage industry.
It is estimated that there are 505,000 truckers in [...]
