I plated for BCA for about a year. It's an interesting job which gets you all over the place. I drove some nice cars and some really nasty sheds. My local train station is less than a minute walk from my house. Get yourself one of those fold-up umbrellas.
Just adding that these vids are better than just the 'Rail Journey' ones . As a Lorry driver we are not allowed to, or even insured to give you a lift when your waving your plates on the side of the road ! Just like a 'Working' Michael Portillo !
I did this years ago and if the car was unavailable or not as described (an abort) and there wasn't another collection close or on the way home and we were stranded that far away, we would get to the nearest Enterprise car rental and rent a cheap car then drop at at the nearest Enterprise to either home or to another pick-up. Another tip is if you're dropping a car off and the next pick up is on your way, check the car is available and roadworthy BEFORE you drop the first car off, at least then you can phone the office and get an abort on the pick-up and get a plan b, plus you still have a car, so if it's raining you have cover. I was always a bit cheeky, if my next pick-up was 2 or 3 miles away I would always ask the customer or dealership if I could get a lift, even if it meant waiting an hour or so.
Thanks very much for the video. I have just come across your channel and think that you have a really nice style of presentation and there's built-in variety. All the best!
I hope they pay you for 18 hours and reimburse travel expenses. I retired last year, but looking for something to keep me occupied a day or two a week I looked at trade plate deliveries and was put off by the thought of public transport nightmares
I quite like the challenge, but it's not for everyone. Yes I get paid more for longer days and all my travel expenses are reimbursed, I don't think I'd do it if they weren't!
Don't know why the heck I found myself watching this, but strangely interesting! I'm sure you've figured it out, but you'll always get more views for a disaster story.
Loving your channel! Many thanks for taking the time to film, edit and publish these stories. I have rainwear in my rucksack now on every job I do, even if rain is not forecast. After getting drenched a few weeks back by unforecast rain and being soaked for most of the remainder of the day, not an experience I wish to repeat anytime soon! Current longest day for me was around 8am to 1am the next day, 2 jobs that day, the second job was picking up a car from sheerness docks, which ran out of fuel before I even made it to the main gate of the docks.
When you do this type of work , you always phone ahead to see if the customer is A) going to be there. B) that the customer with the vehicle can meet you at the nearest station. C) that if there is any doubt as to the state of the vehicle (especially as its 2nd hand) that its able to be collected and D) work out your route the night before to ensure you can get there. As regards setting a record for collections the furthest distance away from home. Sorry !but not evem close! I had to get from my delivery in Aberdeen to Troon. Collect a car that wasnt available to collect despite speaking to the customer the day before to establish it was available to collect , to then go back to Glasgow to collect a car that then wasnt even back from the customer (who had it on loan) to then travel home by train back to Bicester to get my car to drive 50 miles home. I got home at 5am the next morning. And all for £10.50 per hour at that time.
Yes absolutely, I do all those things well in advance, although if there was that much doubt about the condition of the vehicle I don't think we'd go to see it anyway!
@tradeplatetravels I'm sure you do ..I was highlighting it for others not you.... so apologies if that looked like I was suggesting you didn't... BCA were horrors for sending us to places that hadn't seen the car or we'd get there to find out it had already been collected by another driver. Or we would deliver a car to find out the customer was expecting his old car to be taken away but u had a collection to do 50 miles away and that affected your work for the rest of the day. Or we would turn up to collect a car that hadn't actually been delivered at all...(that was quote frequently happening) it was all good fun... but I loved it..yeah ! It was frustrating at times but you couldn't do anything about it so you learnt not to get upset ...you just did what you could.. The worst but (as you suggested) was getting home afterwards.
Reminds me when I got stuck in Cardiff and had to make my way back home too Liverpool at 7:30pm, long night but I finally got a lift from a kind truck driver he was going all the way too Seaforth docks not far from my home so I was made up
I am from Huddersfield and have a friend who works for BCA and he has the same trouble, 300miles traveled and the car was picked up the week before.. very poor communication in the office
I had a pickup 200 miles from home and when I got there the car had a bald tyre so I refused to drive it, thankfully the agency I worked for paid for both the job and the train to get back home.
Hello, I like your video very much because it is very useful. I have a question. Because I’m thinking about to start the same job, so can you tell me weekly how much money is received? Thank you
be careful police are cracking down on trade plate drivers its illegal to have plates in window they must be put over the existing number plate now using the clips. great video's
I plated for BCA for about a year. It's an interesting job which gets you all over the place. I drove some nice cars and some really nasty sheds. My local train station is less than a minute walk from my house. Get yourself one of those fold-up umbrellas.
I plated for BCA in the days where we had no sat nav nor mobile phones, and our collections would be in the dark on a cold December night in the rain
You need waterproof shoes for those flooded paths, nothing worse than wet feet!
Just adding that these vids are better than just the 'Rail Journey' ones . As a Lorry driver we are not allowed to, or even insured to give you a lift when your waving your plates on the side of the road ! Just like a 'Working' Michael Portillo !
I did this years ago and if the car was unavailable or not as described (an abort) and there wasn't another collection close or on the way home and we were stranded that far away, we would get to the nearest Enterprise car rental and rent a cheap car then drop at at the nearest Enterprise to either home or to another pick-up. Another tip is if you're dropping a car off and the next pick up is on your way, check the car is available and roadworthy BEFORE you drop the first car off, at least then you can phone the office and get an abort on the pick-up and get a plan b, plus you still have a car, so if it's raining you have cover. I was always a bit cheeky, if my next pick-up was 2 or 3 miles away I would always ask the customer or dealership if I could get a lift, even if it meant waiting an hour or so.
Thanks very much for the video. I have just come across your channel and think that you have a really nice style of presentation and there's built-in variety. All the best!
Thank you, that's really appreciated!
at northgate station platform 3 is for going to lincoln line also newark castle going to lincoln dont have to walk to newark castle station
I hope they pay you for 18 hours and reimburse travel expenses. I retired last year, but looking for something to keep me occupied a day or two a week I looked at trade plate deliveries and was put off by the thought of public transport nightmares
I quite like the challenge, but it's not for everyone. Yes I get paid more for longer days and all my travel expenses are reimbursed, I don't think I'd do it if they weren't!
Same concerns here. Great channel…railway is a real shambles!
i hope you can make more vidoes like this. it is very interesting. quie a job to travel this way
Don't know why the heck I found myself watching this, but strangely interesting! I'm sure you've figured it out, but you'll always get more views for a disaster story.
Loving your channel! Many thanks for taking the time to film, edit and publish these stories. I have rainwear in my rucksack now on every job I do, even if rain is not forecast. After getting drenched a few weeks back by unforecast rain and being soaked for most of the remainder of the day, not an experience I wish to repeat anytime soon!
Current longest day for me was around 8am to 1am the next day, 2 jobs that day, the second job was picking up a car from sheerness docks, which ran out of fuel before I even made it to the main gate of the docks.
I'm glad you're enjoying the videos!
When you do this type of work , you always phone ahead to see if the customer is A) going to be there.
B) that the customer with the vehicle can meet you at the nearest station.
C) that if there is any doubt as to the state of the vehicle (especially as its 2nd hand) that its able to be collected and D) work out your route the night before to ensure you can get there.
As regards setting a record for collections the furthest distance away from home. Sorry !but not evem close!
I had to get from my delivery in Aberdeen to Troon. Collect a car that wasnt available to collect despite speaking to the customer the day before to establish it was available to collect , to then go back to Glasgow to collect a car that then wasnt even back from the customer (who had it on loan) to then travel home by train back to Bicester to get my car to drive 50 miles home.
I got home at 5am the next morning. And all for £10.50 per hour at that time.
Yes absolutely, I do all those things well in advance, although if there was that much doubt about the condition of the vehicle I don't think we'd go to see it anyway!
@tradeplatetravels I'm sure you do ..I was highlighting it for others not you.... so apologies if that looked like I was suggesting you didn't... BCA were horrors for sending us to places that hadn't seen the car or we'd get there to find out it had already been collected by another driver. Or we would deliver a car to find out the customer was expecting his old car to be taken away but u had a collection to do 50 miles away and that affected your work for the rest of the day. Or we would turn up to collect a car that hadn't actually been delivered at all...(that was quote frequently happening) it was all good fun... but I loved it..yeah ! It was frustrating at times but you couldn't do anything about it so you learnt not to get upset ...you just did what you could.. The worst but (as you suggested) was getting home afterwards.
Brompton folding bike is something I would use. An electric one at that. stuff all that walking and time.
That was really interesting- and very stressful -to watch !
We love it!
I do this this job t wise a week. That’s more than enough it can be a long day, and sometimes a wasted trip train there train back
Next time you go from Waterloo to Kings Cross it’s quicker and easier to get the Bakerloo Line to Oxford Circus and Victoria Line from there
Reminds me when I got stuck in Cardiff and had to make my way back home too Liverpool at 7:30pm, long night but I finally got a lift from a kind truck driver he was going all the way too Seaforth docks not far from my home so I was made up
What do you use to plan your public transport routes?
I am from Huddersfield and have a friend who works for BCA and he has the same trouble, 300miles traveled and the car was picked up the week before.. very poor communication in the office
Oh dear, that hasn't happened to me I'm glad to say!
I had a pickup 200 miles from home and when I got there the car had a bald tyre so I refused to drive it, thankfully the agency I worked for paid for both the job and the train to get back home.
Hello, I like your video very much because it is very useful. I have a question. Because I’m thinking about to start the same job, so can you tell me weekly how much money is received? Thank you
Watched several of these interesting especially Knucklass and Llanfairpg I call it been there before
I'm pleased you're enjoying them!
r all trade plate drivers self employed ?
Who makes the call on whether to reject a vehicle? Is it you, or do you send photos/video back to base?
I send photos back or just describe over the phone, I'm not supposed to reject a vehicle all by myself.
I reckon you could find a folding bike useful
I did think of that but I reckon it would be too heavy to lug around the rest of the day!
Now thats a mugs game doing that job
Rather you than me
Whats the money like per week
500
absolute crap
Not enough
Peak partridge
Lovely stuff
be careful police are cracking down on trade plate drivers its illegal to have plates in window they must be put over the existing number plate now using the clips. great video's
According to DVLA Trade Plates must not cover the existing number plate
Do you just randomly make shit up ?