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You can't leave it all behind you but perhaps you should
Page 89
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THE majority of operators using articulated vehicles nowadays do so in order to obtain a greater platform area on which to load the freight they carry. They make little attempt to exploit the potential flexibility of tractive unit and trailer.
Those who do operate conventional artics usually depend on a ratio of trailers to tractive units of the order of l to 1. This reflects the reluctance of operators to tie up capital in a large trailer fleet.
Moreover, in neither case can the full flexibility of artic operation be exploited because owned trailers tend to be of one particular type. Thus, there is little possibility of carrying traffic which might require special treatment such as temperature-controlled freight if the operator has, say, only flat platform vehicles.
Various types
For the average operator, to keep a fleet of trailers of various types on a purely speculative basis would be uneconomical but most have access to the kind of trailer they might require at any particular time by hiring it from one of the trailer hire companies.
Some of these, like Transport Charter and Rentco, are associated with trailer manufacturers but others, like Transport International Pool Ltd (TIP), Trailer Hire and Repair Ltd and Articulated Trailer Hire Ltd, are unaligned with any manufacturer. Others, such as Flexi-Van International Ltd, Xtra, ICS Trailers and Trailer Finance and Hire Ltd, fulfil a particular function which might be providing trailers for international operation.
In general, there is a wide variety of trailer types to choose from but hiring them is not as easy as driving up and hauling one away. Most hiring companies will require some evidence of financial standing unless you have dealt successfully with them before or represent a large company with an unimpeachable reputation. This evidence will vary from company to company, some rely on a banker's refer ence, but others will require up to three independent references as well. Even then, a prospective hirer could be asked to make a deposit against the value of the trailer.
£200 deposit
For instance, Trailer Hire and Repair Ltd in Bermondsey, could very well ask for a deposit of £200 from a hirer which is returnable less the hire charge when the vehicle is returned. However, this would be waived if the hirer was known or recommended to the company by a previous customer.
Charges vary, too. From Trailer Hire and Repair a 40ft flat trailer with twistlocks would cost about £25 a week. This would become £23 a week if the rental period was for six months and if two or more trailers were involved then the vehicles could cost the hirer £22.50 a week over the sixmonth period.