To those who have lorries, would you be offended...

Paint it Lucky

Paint it Lucky

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There is a lady at my yard who has a lovely little 3.5tonne horsebox which she uses prehps 3/4 times a year. The rest of the time it just sits there or occassionally goes for a drive round the block to keep it ticking over.

I desperately want to get some transport for my horses and at the moment am debating whether to sell my little reliable micra car and get a 4x4 but am also reluctant as I know the running costs would be much higher and as I could only afford an older one I am told it would be hard to repair if it broke down due to parts no longer being made etc (not sure if this is true of all models btw). There is another lovely lady I know who has a trailer she would let me use if i were to get a 4x4 so this would save me having to buy a trailer.

Going back to the lady with the horsebox, I get on with her quite well though we tend to be there at different times/always in a rush so don't get to talk very often. I would really like to ask her if she would consider having a sharer for her lorry (eg, me!) but am abit scared that she might be offended/think it was a rediculous idea/ not want to talk to me anymore (basically I hate asking people anything!). I would offer to pay half the running costs of MOT/tax/service and also whatever it costs to add me as a named driver on her insurance as well as making sure I always keep it well topped up with fuel and obviously cleaned out/well looked after etc whenever I use it. Do you think this would be reasonable? I would want to use it quite a lot though obviously she would get priority if ever she wanted to do any competitions etc. Obviously I'd need to discuss money etc properly with her so we were both happy. I am just really scared to ask! There are other people on the yard who share lorries and it seems to work very well for them, those these are all great big lorries that I can't drive due to having a new car license that only lets me drive up to 3.5 tonne hence why I want to ask this lady.

So if you were a lorry driver and someone asked you if you'd want to share would you mind? Any words of advice. I am such a wus when it comes to asking people anything. Anyway thanks for reading my long and rambly post!
 
I wouldn't be offended in fact I would be grateful. I have shared my lorry with a friend for a year or so and it has worked really well until now as they are moving away and I would love someone to share costs with me otherwise I may have to sell.

I don't think you have anything to lose by asking after all if she says no you are no worse off. Good luck :)
 
I think it would honestly depend on what it was worth - if it was my previous lorry then I would be happy as it was low mileage and needed the driving. I would however ask for the 'sharer' to pay for the proportion of costs, so if you used it 80% of the time then you would pay for 80% of new tyres, and towards repairs. This is because my lorry wasn't particularly worth much but was a fantastic work horse.

If I was asked about my new lorry nearly 17k I wouldn't be so keen as there is depreciation and damage to consider.

There is no harm in asking but you might have to be prepared to give her 50% of the value of the lorry and then 50% or more of the running costs. So it is a proper share.
 
Thanks. It is quite an old lorry so probably not worth a massive ammount. Is it normal to ask for half of the lorries value Lochpearl? I am not sure how long I'd share it for (would like to be longterm but can't guarantee due to job). Would ideally start with a six month-year commitment and go from there.
 
I think you should ask her but be prepared for it to cost more than you think! Personally I wouldn't be happy to put someone I didn't really know as a named driver on my insurance. If you have a knock it affects her insurance, not yours. You may be a wonderful driver but she would have to put a lot of trust in you. You should really get your own insurance.
 
I would say if you are asking for a 'share' then yes, just remember that it isn't just the insurance, fuel and servicing costs. A lorry will decrease in value from the amount of miles you do, more wear and tear on the horse area and go through tyres quicker.

I had a friend that I used to allow to borrow my lorry, she would fill it up with diesel, pay half insurance, tax and plating. If the horse did any damage she would also pay for it but she was my best friend so I let the other things go. If someone on my yard wanted to use my lorry now I have a new one then I would either discourage it or have everything accounted for.

As I said, there is no problem in asking and she might be grateful if it needs to be run (as mine did) but she might want additional money for repairs. I only said about the proper share in my case with my new lorry - with paying for half the lorry. Just remember she has had to fork out the full value of the lorry and what you will be contributing will only be for your benefit - insurance etc. Alternatively you could come to some agreement on a rate per day to use it, I know it isn't strictly allowed but if you were to hire a box on a weekend you could be paying £160 a day for it, ok you wouldn't be paying the tax or insurance but you would still pay for diesel and any damages.
 
Thanks, this has certainly given me more to think about. Now I am even more scared to ask! It is helpfull to see it from a lorry owners perspective, thanks guys.
 
Hi, I have recently bought a 3.5t lorry and it really wouldnt bother me if someone from my yard asked to share as it would help with the costs. The best thing like the others members have said is just ask as she can only say no. Remeber however if you have only recently taken your test you wont be able to tow a trailer without taking another test, hence why i just put the money into a 3.5t box as it was cheaper than a new 4x4, a trailer and the test fee!
 
if it was my lorry, and i didn't use it much, i'd happily lend it to someone to use. older lorries need using to keep them going. i'd be happy with the person filling up the tank with diesel every now and again... and if it was to be a regular, more official thing, some contribution towards other things.

but, then again, i am a pushover... ;)
 
I have passed my trailer test, used to have use of one at my old yard until the YO's land rover sadly broke down :( So either is an option, just trying to decide which is best.
 
Dr Pepper whats the worst that could happen :D :p

Just ask her . :)

Something a long the lines of ...:-

" Hi there jane doe, was wondering if I could have a chat with you about something, As you may or may not know, I am a little stuck for transport at the minute, but wanted to run an idea past you, I hope you don't find this cheeky or feel offended . But how would you feel if I was to ask you about becoming a sharer of your lorry, I would pay towards the cost etc etc etc etc . I hope you don't mind me asking . "

*goes off singing dr pepper whats the worst that could happen*
 
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sorry, I wasn't trying to be horrible, just wanted you to be aware that she might want you to pay more money than that and that it would be embarrassing I think if she turned round to you and said of course you can, I expect £xx per month and you can use it x times.

Ask her, I'm sure it will be fine.
 
A lorry is always my first choice of transport over a trailer anyday purely as I feel more secure driving it and knowing that my pony travels better is the most important thing. I've heard (and unfortunately witnessed) a few bad accidents with trailers that i wouldnt even consider it for myself. I know each person has there own prefered method of transport but I personally think if you have access to a solid reliable lorry, you can't go wrong! Plus if you have the right sort of lorry you can see them throyugh the cab whilst driving, something you cant do in a trailer (without cctv that is?)
 
Hiya,

When I was looking after Zoom her owner had a 3.5 lorry that she used a handful of times a year. It was really old and was just sitting there so I asked if I could use it. I paid the extra insurance money and kept it full of diesel but I didn't pay anything else. TBH it did her a favour since it kept the lorry ticking over and I kept an eye on it (previously it was just parked in a random place where it could have got nicked).

You have nothing to lose by asking! In my case it worked out brilliantly, I got the use of a lorry for 18 months!
 
You should really get your own insurance.[/QUOTE]


Think you'll find that you can't take out insurance in your name for a lorry that belongs to someone else. You would have to be a named driver on the existing insurance. You could possible add protected no claims if your driving history allows.

It won't hurt to ask her and she may well like the idea. I let my friend borrow my trailer to pull with her 4x4 and I have no problem with it.

Let us know what her answer is and Good Luck :)
 
they can only say no.

If it were me, I have insurance for any driver over 25 so on that front I wouldnt be bothered. Depending on the frequency / mileage you wanted to do would affect cost. If you wanted to go out once a month 15 miles round trip i'd just say fill it with diesel and bung us 50 quid for using it - well obviously not as thats hire and reward, but if feed/bedding turned up for my horses then christmas has come early aye! I would not get into any long term agreement with anyone, its my box and i've paid alot for it so would not want any ties to anyone incase it broke down or I decided to sell it etc.
 
Def' ask her and if she says yes, ideally have a written confo that you are insured and also how you would deal with repairs which can be difficult to determine if it was you who broke it or if it was on the cards (ie gearbox clutch etc).
 
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