any couriers around?

[raul]

wondered if any of you in here work as a courier and want to share some tips ideas with a newbie thanks

[masterofinsanity]

if you are starting out then you need to speak to Jamz but i'm sure he will advise you not to.

[raul]

i already started few weeks ago and the company i subcontract for are a bit thin with work i wonder if everywhere is the same at this time of year , hard to find a competitive insurance as well . Not sure if is wise to work with more then one company

[MillaMeter]

Hi,

I work for Initial Shity Link (City Link)

Not really alot of advice to give apart from if people treat you like crap, throw it right back at them!

Enjoy

Rich

[raul]

fortunately i don,t get that (yet?) i respect everyone else and i get the same back within reasons;;;by the way that can i had from you sounds good makes my 400 stand out

[Jamz]

i already started few weeks ago and the company i subcontract for are a bit thin with work i wonder if everywhere is the same at this time of year , hard to find a competitive insurance as well . Not sure if is wise to work with more then one company

f*** it i just did a massive reply and lost it all...

*thinks what he wrote*

City Link and TNT etc will suck out your soul. Shite money and they expect you to call in every morning even though they won't pay you a retainer! You may as well be employed by them, because it fks up most of your other business.

If you REALLY have to, you may as well work with as many as you can, and the trick is to make sure you get a return drop from your destination - but this is extremely hard to do unless you have someone sat in an office phoning around for you.

Shop around everywhere for the bike insurance, but for your G.I.T. and Public Liability try a small local brokers. I used David Matthews of Alvechurch, and have since directed quite a few self employed people their way who have all got great deals far better than anywhere else.

Not sure where you're located, but if you're anywhere near a newsroom studio - Central News, BBC etc - gnaw your own leg off to get in with them! They pay a VERY nice retainer and you'll be sat around drinking coffee a lot of the time. I got a contract with Central News about a week after my insurance ran out and I was winding the business down...

I wouldn't recommend using the ZXR400 for long (although it's great fun!!!) just because of the wear and tear costs.

Getting paid to ride your bike all day all over the country, though?? Hell yeah!

[Brett]

I was a courier for a few years in my youth(/me puffs pipe and adjusts slippers). I found the bigger the company, the worst you got treated.

[zxrnoakze400]

im a courier in a transit for a company in harlow called "door to door" its a small company but appears to be 1 of the only ones in the area so we get lots of local intrest, its only a small company at the moment i belive and the owner used to be co-owner of "fast-track" but they fuked him out of the job i think, we get lots of work from TNT aswell but im guessing we get paid more then the TNT as we dont do like shifts, we are self employed couriers. i got up at 4:30 am today to get to leeds for 9am! also been to brighton , coventry , milton keynes and london this week so im hoping for a nice bita cash . just thought id share my courier lyfstyle! 1 more thing... I HATE LONDON!

[stug]

Around 15 years ago I stopped being a courier in Glasgow just before the bottom fell out of the market.
I worked for Pony Express for a few years , it was a good laugh and I was out on the bike every day, at the end I made very little money as most of it was put back into the bike, Tyres, Chain & sprockets wheel bearings,oil, petrol, gloves , boots , helmets, waterproofs, the list goes on.

When I started despatching there was probably in the region of between 70 -100 bikes running round Glasgow.
When I gave it up there was probably less than 30.
Now your lucky if theres half a dozen.

The main thing that I got out of despatching was a lifetimes experience riding a bike and also picked up a hell of a lot by doing my own repairs on the bikes as I could not afford to pay someone to do it for me.If the bike was off the road I was doing nothing anyway .

Wouldnt do it again though

[Jamz]

1 more thing... I HATE LONDON!

Me too!

You know that feeling you used to get back in your school days? When the theme from 'Antiques Roadshow' or 'Last Of The Summer Wine' came on the TV on a Sunday night, and you knew it was nearly bed time and you hadn't even started your pile of maths homework... and you had double maths first thing on Monday morning with some old witch of a teacher???

THAT was the same feeling I got if I knew I was being sent to London on a job!

[raul]

thanks for your input guys
i managed to get insured for 800 (the contractor pays the good in transit) i work for BONDS worldwide express they have good posh clients(burberry, city group, Next, SCC, ) yes London it is a night mare but that's where the business is and i will look into BBC newsroom as well ;
If all goes well and i will earn enough money i will get another bike for work till then i use what i got ;
Anyone tried uses or have a heated jacket element ? (DIY Kit) are they any good ? do you need to upgrade the battery for extra current i have heated grips fitted at the moment 1.5A max rated