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[Mr Mr B WANTED $395 Blocked]

andywilliams1187 wrote:

If it’s not for you mate would you not consider driving something else? Like doing the old dear journeys to the coast etc?

When driving, don’t ever let anyone bully you with a tight timeframe mate. Your the one driving and it’s your license on the line. You decide the speed you go, not some jumped up planner in the office. If they wanted to discipline you for driving slow, get the union in. There is no way that you can be bollocked for driving in a manner you deam safe, especially when carrying members of the public. If they keep on at you over it, tell them your going to VOSA and the transport commisioner

 

Yup, you actually have the laws of the road on your side. Many buses are late and while the average person moans, the reason is very rarely the drivers fault. And if something isn’t your fault, you can’t be punished for it. They make the timetable strict because it has to be, but it’s not the end of the world. You just need to suss out when you should communicate a delay and how to handle it. which isn’t difficult. I suspect you have been lead to believe you must mow everyone down and smash through everyone to be not less than one millisecond late.

Speak to other drivers on how they find it and how they deal with it. I really think it’s not as bad as you have been lead to believe.

I drove 7.5t for agencies which is the worst. One day I was expected to drive a truck with two bald tyres. I refused. It cost me a days unpaid work and a frown from the c*nt at the agency who got a piece of my mind and a warning that I would go to his boss. You might find you have to stand your ground in a situation but the average situation is no drama.

Carry on and do some research. I’m sure you’ll find it’s not the stress it is painted as. They just want you on time, if possible and not because you felt like pulling up an having a nap for half hour.

[inspect her gadget WANTED $21 Outlaw]

Cheers Andy, tbh the planners and gaffers are not too bad they realise I’m new to this….however the other drivers who are waiting to take over from you and the punters who have appointments, work etc to get to are not so understanding to say the least!

Coach driving may be an option but the company I work for doesn’t do this so I would still have the training payment to pay if I left plus most coach companies won’t take on newly qualified drivers, you require 2 years experience, which is understandable!

[inspect her gadget WANTED $21 Outlaw]

Thanks for all the feedback folks, some food for thought. This really is a great forum to be a part of.

Just about to leave for a 10 hour Friday night backshift……the joys!

Here’s to a decent shift!

[andywilliams1187 WANTED $398 Blocked]

Fuck the other drivers mate. It really annoys me when they are harsh on new drivers. When i was on the wagons I used to go nuts at people who would take the piss out of the new lad struggling to reverse a 40ft trailer.

Everyone has to start somewhere and it takes practise. Your driving a vehicle which is bigger than most and a lot more dangerous. If your ever unsure, stop, hazards on and get out and check. If the next driver complains, pull him to one side and tell him to fuck off and die as you are new but won’t take shit from someone who thinks they know best because they have done it longer. It’s almost bullying mate and I fucking hate bullies.

[inspect her gadget WANTED $21 Outlaw]

Well….2 days after I started this thread and things haven’t improved!

Friday – I was coming off my bus and onto my break only 6 minutes late (the earliest I’ve been late all week) and the new driver pipes up….where the f**k have you been? He swiftly got told to piss off!

Saturday – I got my first complaint put in against me. I picked up 20 or so football fans coming back from a match and because they were a bit loud and had had a couple this old guy complained that I should’ve refused them for being intoxicated!

I think I need to speak to citizens advice soon and see what my options are and try and get a new job!!

[Mo MoonHook WANTED $30 Outlaw]

It’s a tough one, nothing is more miserable than being at a job you don’t enjoy, especially when you have a family to provide for.  I was in that situation once and was stuck in a contract.  It did get better after a few weeks but it was crap.

 

I think you have two options in your situation:

 

1. Suck it up, care a little less at work so you’re less stressed about it.  Leave at the point you don’t need to pay the training back.

2. Look for a job that’ll cover the training costs. £2500 is a lot of money, but not so much when looking for a new job.

 

Good luck, I hope it improves.

 

Moonhook

[Haz40 WANTED $1,167 Outlaw]

I can’t believe this hasn’t worked out for you. The original thread you made you seemed so happy to start a new career. We all remember what you said then and I’m sure when I say I’m gutted things haven’t gone as you wished I speak for all.

[Green2711 WANTED $492 Outlaw]

Fuck that old geezer mate, don’t let it get you down. Some people just love to complain I’ve had a few people report me to head office and accused me of having poor customer service when really what they mean is that I won’t stand there and take the abuse they are yelling at me I won’t be anyone’s “yes man”. On the other hand I have a ton of customers say that I’m a lovely young man (oldies love me haha). Getting a bus around Liverpool on match day and there’s always singing and chanting on most buses so you kind of get used to it, defintely wouldn’t bother putting in a complaint over it.

Hoping things improve for you mate and keep telling these drivers who are having a go to get fucked, they must always be on time eh wankers.

[Haz40 WANTED $1,167 Outlaw]

I get customer care issues all the time. They do my head in. My response is never more than 10 words. Fuck em mate. That’s what I say.

[St Stevie25 WANTED $254 Outlaw]

Yip.. Short and sweet responses are best, keep the long winded letters for your lawyer.. ?And always make sure you know the regulations inside out. ?

[DEVIL4POSTER WANTED $55 Outlaw]

There are several solutions to this problem depending which suits you best.  I’ve been in your situation myself 14 years ago. I have had 5 maxed out credit cards totalling 10k and a loan for 2k and three over drafts totalling 2.5k. my income was around £1,800 take home pay from two jobs 6 days a week 8am-10pm. Like yourself didn’t wanna go bankrupt have a DRO or IVA, although in hindsight it might not have been so bad to have gone down one of these routes several of my friends did and now have relatively happy straightforward lives with families holidays abroad once a year have their own houses and even credit cards.

personally if I were you I would book a meeting with your local Citizens Advice Bureaux to discuss your options and whats best for you at the moment and moving forward.  speak to stepchange and work out an affordable budget. look at Martin Lewis’s website for money saving tips and advice, prehaps you could some PPI back from the credit card companies.

A notable point is to look at who you could pay less to. If your making regular payments to credit card companies is your credit ok? in which case if it is another option open to you as to how to manage your debt more effectively would be to seek a 0% balance transfer to another credit card for 12months interest free or more they are about (not advisable if your likely to rack up new debt on this credit card). by doing this you are avoiding paying back “backloaded debt” on your current credit cards and will be able for a year or however long you get a 0% balance transfer for to whack chunks of the loans you owe meaning you can pay your debt of quicker. once you do a 0% balance transfer cut up your current credit cards.

find other paid work in your days off( another source of income). If anyone owes you money get it back off them. sell any crap you dont use or need( have a carboot etc).

the next point fits in with what was mentioned earlier go to your G.P. maybe your stressed and will get support through time off due to this. work fulltime at another job during holiday taken from current one. maybe don’t even take the holiday if you know what I mean.

[inspect her gadget WANTED $21 Outlaw]

Thanks guys some more great advice there!

Either way I think I’m stuck in this contract….unless I pay the training fees! I know haz I am gutted because I genuinely thought it would be something I enjoyed! I enjoy driving but that seems so much an 3rd party part of the job….maybe green would agree that driving is way down on your list of priorities!

Devil…I know what you mean, how did things work out for you? Have you “caught up” with others in the same situation? It all seems a very long road at the moment and with the kids preparing for high school i  know how costly it will be!

I’ve tried PPI and I know what you mean about using a “holiday” to my advantage but I don’t have many other skills….I was a postie lol!

[Ke Kerr001 WANTED $1 Outlaw]

DRO you wouldn’t qualify for that amount of debt and since a consolidation loan is out of the equation maybe an IVA would be the best solution for yourself. What an IVA is , is an Individual Voluntary Arrangement with you, your creditors and an IP firm who handle this for you. Its a 5 year term and allows you to pay back a minimum of £85 a month back to your creditors. The IP firm will accumulate your monthly payments (in which they will go through your Income and Expenditure to get an affordable solution) and distribute them to your creditors. Once 5 years is up all your remaining debt is wiped off, like bankruptcy your credit file will be affected but you have to expect that with debts written off. Any questions don’t hesitate to ask me as I used to work in the Insolvency Industry.

[inspect her gadget WANTED $21 Outlaw]

Thanks kerr001 I’ve never even heard of an IVA! Again though I am very wary of going down the bankruptcy/insolvency route or anything that will damage my slowly improving credit score.

Because my family don’t know the true figure of my debt and the fact that we hope to move house when we can afford to going down this route would delay things further!

I was hoping that it wouldn’t be to difficult to consolidate my debt, half my gambling outgoings from £900 to around £500 giving me a chance to take a lower paying job and escape this job I hate!

I am so glad I am signed up to Gamstop as the urge to deposit and try and get a big win to dig me out the very hole I dug myself into at the moment is almost unbearable!

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