Travel time/costs

[DavidCarp]

Just wondered if anyone had a decent travel expenses/time equation that worked for different distances.

Basically looking at a contract which will be night works based all over the country paid per shift at fixed rate which is fine. But the travel is a pain to get right, 

eg charge .50p per mile after first 30 miles travel so if job is say 200 miles round trip would get £85 which covers fuel and a little bit more, the time taken I can swallow into the night shift cost.

problem lies when I have to travel a long distance, for example costing for two shifts in Inverness (I’m in Bristol) this is a 1060 mile round trip so at .50 a mile that’s £515 let’s say £200 in fuel leaves £315 but it’s a monstrous 18 hours of driving without breaks say 20 with breaks so £315 for 20 hours driving is £15.75 an hour which isn’t awful but if I wasn’t driving for them I could be somewhere else earning better money. 
 

cheers

 

[Murdoch]

Only you can decide if its worth it ........ I wouldn't even consider it

How much is the hourly rate for the night shift? and who pays for your accomodation?

 

[Sharpend]

Is this a direct contract of your own o raining, or is this a price you are looking at Subbing the work for? 
 

I started working away and thought that I had secured a good price however after a period of time I realised that is sold myself short so renegotiated a better deal, you have to consider:

Accommodation, food, wear and tear of own vehicle, depreciation of said vehicle.

you also have to consider the effects on yourself. Long driving really takes it out of you. 

 

[DavidCarp]

Cheers for the reply guys, hourly rate for night shift is a good rate to be fair around £60/hour on average. Accommodation is paid for by them separately, it is subbing out to a firm. I was just hoping for some calculation I could have which works for all scenarios but I don’t think I’m gonna find it. As you said sharpend I don’t want to sell my self short and a long drive takes it toll. Cheers

 

[Sharpend]

If you are subbing then I very much suspect that the price you’ve been given will be all in? Or are you trying to reverse engineer the costs? 

 

[Andy™]

i charge normal hourly rate for however long it takes to get to & from site, plus mileage

depending on distance, youll be paying for a hotel too

 

[Evans Electric]

Bristol to Inverness  !!!!    I wouldn't consider it to be honest .   

I used to work around the country on overhead cranes  , so early starts  (Which I'm hopeless at)   But the hourly clock starts ticking from home  and stops on return .    Company vehicle & fuel card so can't help with that bit .   I think the furthest we went was Newcastle  from Brum  with the panel we'd made  filling the estate ,  must have been 5 hours there.   

There for the week doing 10 hour days , hotel & drinks paid with a signed company cheque .      

Newcastle Brown causes hotel rooms to spin quite fast .  

 

[UNG]

Just wondered if anyone had a decent travel expenses/time equation that worked for different distances.

Basically looking at a contract which will be night works based all over the country paid per shift at fixed rate which is fine. But the travel is a pain to get right, 

eg charge .50p per mile after first 30 miles travel so if job is say 200 miles round trip would get £85 which covers fuel and a little bit more, the time taken I can swallow into the night shift cost.

problem lies when I have to travel a long distance, for example costing for two shifts in Inverness (I’m in Bristol) this is a 1060 mile round trip so at .50 a mile that’s £515 let’s say £200 in fuel leaves £315 but it’s a monstrous 18 hours of driving without breaks say 20 with breaks so £315 for 20 hours driving is £15.75 an hour which isn’t awful but if I wasn’t driving for them I could be somewhere else earning better money. 
 

cheers

Cheers for the reply guys, hourly rate for night shift is a good rate to be fair around £60/hour on average. Accommodation is paid for by them separately, it is subbing out to a firm. I was just hoping for some calculation I could have which works for all scenarios but I don’t think I’m gonna find it. As you said sharpend I don’t want to sell my self short and a long drive takes it toll. Cheers

Not sure what you are asking and hoping for here

I don't think there is any definitive answer to the travelling time and mileage payments. You are highlighting one specific job in probably a much bigger picture that you make no mention of and appear unhappy at what this one job pays for travelling and the inconvenience it causes . Sub contract work can take in many different forms and payment terms be it on going continuous work to an ad hoc as and when needed basis, £60 / hr is a decent rate but I don't see you getting anywhere near that for travelling unless you have some specialism that cannot be found locally or within a couple of hours travelling, If there is any room for negotiation one option might be to work out some mutually agreed radius allowances at 100, 150, 200 miles etc from your start point paid on top of the mileage payment to balance out time and distance variables

I think your Bristol to Inverness and return travelling times are a tad optimistic averaging just under 60mph even with good weather in the past I've seen all four seasons in a few hours even in the middle of what was supposed to be summer, and with storms we are getting at the moment the A9 was heavily flooded in places yesterday so it wouldn't be a straight forward trip

 

[Sharpend]

The thing I give with travel is that it is a variable game dependant upon the number of players. If the company you are subbing to have a team heading the same direction then an arrangement could be made whereby you agree to meet up and take turns in driving so alternating  through the weeks, thus no one vehicle is constantly used which lowers wear and tear mileage on your vehicle. This may however mean enduring silly o clock starts. 

if on the other hand you are a lone worker with a specific skill set then I see travelling time is something that can in part be attributed to be done within working hours. You say for example that you’ll give an hour or so of your time towards travelling but beyond that you will do any remaining travel in their time. 
 

:C  

 

[Zeespark]

Why not take EasyJet from Bristol to Inverness, then rent a car, dirty cheap travel and less than an hour each way?

Andy Guinness

 

[ProDave]

Before we moved here, I drove Oxfordshire to Inverness many times (still do for visiting relatives)  You won't do that in under 10 hours. and though I have done it no stop you feel like sh!t at the end, certainly not ready to do a days work.

Out of interest what are you doing in Inverness that a local sparky can't do?

If you choose to fly, do let us know how you get on checking in an electricians complete tool kit in your luggage.  Done the Bristol to Inverness flight many times. Also flown to Gatwick, Manchester and Luton from here.

 

[Tony S]

Look on the HMIT website.

 

[Sidewinder]

I cover the whole country from Swansea.

I price each job individually based on the optimum method of travel.

Last longish jaunt was Sittingbourne, used the train.

If it's London its always train.

Scotland it is either train, or fly/drive unless I need lots of tools.  Then it's drive up the day before the job & stay over, customer pays whichever way,  all the time & costs.

Last time in Scotland it was drive to hotel near Cardiff Airport, early flight to Edinburgh, picked up by client & driven to site in Invergowrie.  Dropped back to the hotel afterwards, taxi back to site then dropped off at Dundee train station for a train back to Newcastle, where I picked up a hire car for a couple of days around Newcastle then back to Swansea 1 way hire.

2 customers, each picked up their proportion of the bill without question.

Travel like this is very much horses for courses.

 

[UNG]

If you choose to fly, do let us know how you get on checking in an electricians complete tool kit in your luggage. 

Done it a few times including gas soldering irons (had to be empty) and and a complete set of rope access kit on a couple of occasions, granted most of it had to go into the hold and was opened and checked by security before it was allowed through.

I have travelled with the spares needed to repair a catalytic generator (fruit ripening unit) in my hand luggage had a very interesting trip through security when traces of chemicals associated with drug smuggling were found on a couple of the parts.

I always carry any test equipment in my hand luggage to avoid any damage risk and the way security handle them varies at every airport although I have never been stopped from taking them in hand luggage you have to explain why, I normally just tell them they have lithium ion batteries in now and they are not allowed in the hold

 

[binky]

travelling time is time you can't spend earning money on another job, so you need to cover lst earnings somehow. Around here, it's fairly customary to cover travel at half labour rate.

 

[Andy™]

travelling time is time you can't spend earning money on another job, so you need to cover lst earnings somehow. Around here, it's fairly customary to cover travel at half labour rate.

dont really see why people should charge less for travelling. you still cant do anything else and you could have been working...

 

[kerching]

My clock starts when I set off and it stops when I get home. If I get stuck in a traffic jam for 6 hours on the way home then my customer pays. They know my terms

had a client once who complained they had a invoice for over £700 but I was only on site for 2 hours!...until I explained about travel,  fuel etc.   They sulked and paid.   A few months later they needed me again so. Got them to email me their acceptance of my terms before I even thought about setting off

 

[binky]

dont really see why people should charge less for travelling. you still cant do anything else and you could have been working...

it's on the basis that driving isn't skilled work, but, I totally agree with your point. 

 

[Sharpend]

it's on the basis that driving isn't skilled work, but, I totally agree with your point. 

I’d disagree, it’s a skill to drive within the margins of the HWC and speed cameras and then the confines of what the engine was designed to do. 
what is it with London that so many areas are 20mph max limit with speed cameras as well, my 2.0l van doesn’t like such slow speeds, I spend most of the time shuffling the gears between 2nd and 3rd, that can’t be fuel efficient or benefitting the environment. Wouldn’t mind but there is no hazardous area like a school etc nearby? 

 

[Doc Hudson]

travelling time is time you can't spend earning money on another job, so you need to cover lst earnings somehow. Around here, it's fairly customary to cover travel at half labour rate.

Another school of thought is that 99.99% of average workers who attend any office/factory/shop/etc have to get to their place of work at their own expense in their own time, typically somewhere between 30mins to 1hour. So taking an average max allowance of 45mins each-way, in your own time, at your own expense, then everything else is at your full hourly rate. Obviously if it is also a long day then overtime rates apply.

Doc H.