Pulling profits: The pros and cons of trailer ownership

Jackie Wormley of Hutchins, Texas, bought her first trailer in 2006, even though she was leased to a company that required owner-operators to use its trailers. She waited until joining Landstar in 2011 to put the trailer into service as part of her “run smarter, not harder” philosophy. The result, she says, is increased revenue and better control of her business.

“Last year, I ran less than 70,000 miles and had an increase in revenue of about $6,000 pulling my own trailer,” Wormley says.

The extra revenue is not the only financial payback for Wormley. With the addition of an ATDynamics Trailer Tail, wide-single tires and small airflow enhancers called Airtabs, she is boasting more than a mile-per-gallon savings over her prior operation.

A leased owner-operator owning his or her own trailer can expect to earn 3 to 12 cents per mile more, with the average being about 6 cents, says Todd Amen, president and chief executive officer of the owner-operator financial services company ATBS. That equates to a $350 to $800 increase in monthly revenue.

However, financial gain wasn’t Wormley’s main motivation. “The number one benefit of buying a trailer is CSA (Compliance, Safety, Accountability) because you are in control of it,” she says. “You take care of it, and you know what you have. That’s not true when you are pulling company equipment.”

Not being hit with equipment violations and keeping a good CSA score makes the owner-operator a more attractive client for fleets, Wormley says. Also, leased owner-operators often are charged for using fleet trailers. The overall savings in equipment charges and fuel – coupled with a higher percentage of revenue or per-mile pay – are icing on the cake.

“Some independent contractors make more money with a trailer,” Amen says, “while buying a trailer bankrupts some if they haven’t properly thought through it.”