Owner-operator

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In the United States and Canada, an owner-operator is a self-employed commercial truck driver or a small business that operates trucks for transporting goods over highways for its customers.^[1]

The Motor Carrier Act of 1980 deregulated the industry and made it easier for manufacturers to set their own prices on shipping goods, and also allowed owner-operators to be more successful by taking some of the control out of the hands of the larger motor carriers.^[2] It was now possible to find a carrier willing to haul goods for what customers wanted to pay, rather than what the larger carriers' rates were.

• An owner-operator is free to either haul free-lance (non-committal to any one firm or product), or enter into a lease agreement to dedicate their equipment to one customer or product.

• The owner-operator typically has to pay higher rates on insurance due to smaller size than most larger companies, meaning they have to charge more to balance the cost.

References

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