Swoop Platform

[thtdon]

I had a guy from Agero call me the other day, asking me why I haven't signed up for their Agero/Swoop Dispatching Platform.  I had no idea what he was talking about.  So he said that he would email it to me.  The form really doesn't tell me very much.  Yesterday I got a call to tow a fairly new car to a dealership.  I gave the dispatcher a 60 minute ETA.  Right after I got the call, the customer called me, asking me where I was.  I told her that I had given an ETA of 60 minutes.  And I was on another call.  She said that the screen on her phone is supposed to tell her my exact location.  She said that the space that is supposed to say that was blank.  I got to the car within 45 minutes.  So after I unloaded the car at the dealership, I asked the woman more about what she told me.  I can always count on the customers to tell the truth.  She showed me the message on her phone.  There is a little map, showing her location (at her house).  But nothing about my location.  So after I left, I realized that Swoop is yet another scam. 

 

My neighbor is a glass installer for Safe-Lite Auto Glass.  A few minutes before he arrives at a customer's location, Safe-Lite sends a text to the customer, advising him that the truck is almost there.  The message shows a picture of his truck, and his photograph.  (I keep telling him that they should put his picture on the side of the truck!  You can only imagine what he tells me, LOL!)  The difference between him and me is he is an employee of Safe-Lite, and all he does all day is replace their windshields.  So they control what he does every minute of every day.  Whereas, I am an independent contractor, and I handle road calls for other clients and motor clubs besides Agero.  And no one is going to track my movements.  Years ago, AAA had a contract that, if you signed it, you agreed to tow for them exclusively.  And you had to paint your truck to match their color scheme.  Not something that I would do.   Agero would have to pay me a lot more money than they're paying me now for that kind of commitment from me.  Not likely.

 

A few years ago, I was advised by an Agero employee, to stay away from their "apps".  I was told that they control the content of the app at all times.  So if you access the app, and the dispatch information is wrong, they can access it, and edit the information, preventing you from getting a GOA if they dispatched you to the wrong location.  They will basically call you a liar.  I like PAPER.  I want the call emailed to me, so I can print it out on PAPER. 

 

I haven't made any comments on that new contract that they put out there.  There is nothing in that contract that benefits any of us.  It totally benefits Agero.  If you sign it, there is no promise that they will ever give you even one call.  They spell it out in plain English that the only time that you will collect over-mileage from a customer is when the customer pays the over-mileage in cash.  If the customer pays the over-mileage with a credit card, Agero collects it in full and keeps it all, at $4 a mile.  They will not share it with you.  THAT IS A PAY CUT. 

 

I will not sign anything, and I will not agree to any changes, without a rate increase.  I have begun the process of applying for Social Security.  It has been my intention to continue working.  (If I want spending money, I'll have to keep working.  My wife will probably grab my S.S. check every month!).

[Old Tow]

5 hours ago, thtdon said:

I had a guy from Agero call me the other day, asking me why I haven't signed up for their Agero/Swoop Dispatching Platform.  I had no idea what he was talking about.  So he said that he would email it to me.  The form really doesn't tell me very much.  Yesterday I got a call to tow a fairly new car to a dealership.  I gave the dispatcher a 60 minute ETA.  Right after I got the call, the customer called me, asking me where I was.  I told her that I had given an ETA of 60 minutes.  And I was on another call.  She said that the screen on her phone is supposed to tell her my exact location.  She said that the space that is supposed to say that was blank.  I got to the car within 45 minutes.  So after I unloaded the car at the dealership, I asked the woman more about what she told me.  I can always count on the customers to tell the truth.  She showed me the message on her phone.  There is a little map, showing her location (at her house).  But nothing about my location.  So after I left, I realized that Swoop is yet another scam. 

 

My neighbor is a glass installer for Safe-Lite Auto Glass.  A few minutes before he arrives at a customer's location, Safe-Lite sends a text to the customer, advising him that the truck is almost there.  The message shows a picture of his truck, and his photograph.  (I keep telling him that they should put his picture on the side of the truck!  You can only imagine what he tells me, LOL!)  The difference between him and me is he is an employee of Safe-Lite, and all he does all day is replace their windshields.  So they control what he does every minute of every day.  Whereas, I am an independent contractor, and I handle road calls for other clients and motor clubs besides Agero.  And no one is going to track my movements.  Years ago, AAA had a contract that, if you signed it, you agreed to tow for them exclusively.  And you had to paint your truck to match their color scheme.  Not something that I would do.   Agero would have to pay me a lot more money than they're paying me now for that kind of commitment from me.  Not likely.

 

A few years ago, I was advised by an Agero employee, to stay away from their "apps".  I was told that they control the content of the app at all times.  So if you access the app, and the dispatch information is wrong, they can access it, and edit the information, basically preventing you from getting a GOA if they dispatched you to the wrong location.  They will basically call you a liar.  I like PAPER.  I want the call emailed to me, so I can print it out on PAPER. 

 

I haven't made any comments on that new contract that they put out there.  There is nothing in that contract that benefits any of us.  It totally benefits Agero.  If you sign it, there is no promise that they will ever give you even one call.  They spell it out in plain English that the only time that you will collect over-mileage from a customer is when the customer pays the over-mileage in cash.  If the customer pays the over-mileage with a credit card, Agero collects it in full and keeps it all, at $4 a mile.  They will not share it with you.  THAT IS A PAY CUT. 

 

I will not sign anything, and I will not agree to any changes, without a rate increase.  I have begun the process of applying for Social Security.  It has been my intention to continue working.  (If I want spending money, I'll have to keep working.  My wife will probably grab my S.S. check every month!).

Howdy Don. What we found out is if you don't accept their new terms you can not go any farther to file a claim. I told my wife to NOT agree to anything, then she called me and told me if she didn't accept it we would NOT get paid !!! Isn't that forceing you to accept? Is that legal??

[ESC]

On 3/22/2020 at 3:58 AM, Old Tow said:

Howdy Don. What we found out is if you don't accept their new terms you can not go any farther to file a claim. I told my wife to NOT agree to anything, then she called me and told me if she didn't accept it we would NOT get paid !!! Isn't that forceing you to accept? Is that legal??

Fortunately for us, we mainly had stopped taking Agero before the new contract terms and all of our calls were paid up.  That was the final straw for me.  Seeing all new terms in their benefit without any sort of pay increase for our long outdated rates was the end for me.  We now quote them $375 minimum credit card only.   But it really shows how scummy they are to FORCE you into agreeing to their new terms.

[thtdon]

I like the part that says that we agree to never take them to court.  I probably wouldn't ever take them to court anyway.  They have deeper pockets than I do.  But can they get you to agree to that in advance???  Doesn't sound legal to me.  But what do I know?  I am just a dumb tow truck driver.

[Stuart Wagner]

When does this Agero/ Swoop platform officially start? When does your billing start through Swoop? Do they call you for dispatches or do you get a text or email???

 

[Old Tow]

We have been towing for them for quit a while. I think our office has been billing them through Agero. They call us for dispatch and give us a PO, then they email us with the work order.

 

 

Edited April 8, 2020 by Old Tow

[GRUMPS The Towman]

I need some help. Agero called me today and asked if i have intergrated with swoop. I told him that I did as the directions stated so as far as I know I did. He then said that I need to get the swoop app so they can start dispatching me calls through it. Now my partner and I are simple guys. we dont have any fancy dispatching system, I see no need for it being it is just my partner and myself. We dont use towbook. A customer calls, I write down all the pertainent information in my daily log book and one of us does the call. The guy from Agero said they are no longer calling providers for service and are only using said app. I am NOT allowing anyone to track me, especially for the downright insulting rates they pay. If they want to buy me trucks and equipment they can track me and my gear. But since I pay for it, i am the only one that needs to know where my trucks are. So I am hoping someone here can tell me is iF I decide to do this app thing, How will I know they want me to do a call if they are not calling me and asking if I am available or if it is even in my service area since they seem to always call me for crap that is no where near me. I am in no way a tech savvy person. I want a phone call for my dispatches. does this mean my relationship with Agero is over? They have never been my bread n butter but the filler work has always been nice.

[ESC]

They are doing you a favor. Get rid of them now. You’ll be better off. I have blocked their numbers, so no more annoying calls from them for $50 jobs 30 miles away.

But if you do go to the swoop app they will track you and send calls direct to the app. It will be the same (usually inaccurate) info they usually send on a fax or email but in the app. You’ll be able to accept and decline calls and update your eta.

I used to use swoop when Tesla used them for their billing. It was a nice system. I started looking more into it and then heard Agero was buying into swoop, so I ran the opposite direction.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Stuart Wagner]

I got a phone call from Agero today for a heavy duty motorhome call, first Agero call in 3 months. I asked dispatcher is this an Agero call or swoop call? He didn't know what I meant. I received an email dispatch from him after I accepted the call then my phone dinged from Swoop, then I got an email dispatch from Swoop. The driver I sent only has a flip phone. Nobody called and complained they couldn't track my guy. Not sure if I bill on Agero site or swoop site. Nobody ever calls and explains how to handle this transformation from agero to swoop. We towed for Agero for 5 years and not once did a rep ever call and check in with us.

 

[GRUMPS The Towman]

I dont even know who my rep is or if I even have one... Been doing work for Agero for going on 7 years and i think I have spoke to someone claiming to be my rep once about a year into working with them. They are a total joke. I cant understand how there are towers out there that basically rely on these bozos for work.

[Stuart Wagner]

I was able to bill that tow out on the normal agero site. Got another heavy tow from them this evening we are doing.

[thtdon]

I have been out of work sick for 5 weeks.  I have determined that if being quarantined in my house for 5 weeks is anything like retirement, retirement is not for me!  Today is my second day back.  I am trying.  But I just can't get the hang of the Swoop platform. I have never dealt with such garbage.  I went on my email last Friday.  And I discovered 26 Swoop calls that had been dispatched to me without my knowledge.  I opened up each call and read it.  A little more than half the calls were WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY out of my area,  So what has changed?  That's been happening for years.  I have been trying to get in touch with the woman who set up my account.  So far, I only get voice mail.  Anybody else having better luck with this than me?

 

thtdon

[GRUMPS The Towman]

In my opinion the whole swoop thing is a joke. It is nothing more than a way for them to know your whereabouts while doing work for them. I too get non stop calls for jobs that are no where near me. then when one of their dispatchers call and ask why you cant do the work they get pissy because you tell them it is too far away. Sorry, I am not driving 45 miles out to change a flat, do a 1 mile tow or do a jump at what they pay. I am about ready to tell them to piss off and delete the app. 

[Old Tow]

Isn't Allstate doing the same thing? I get calls 24/7 wanting me deliver gas, or change a tire cleeeaaarrr across the state some as far as 250 miles. I go whaaaatttt !!!

[thtdon]

I don't know.  I haven't handled calls for Allstate for a number of years.

[thtdon]

I talked to a woman from the Swoop Provider Advocate Group on Friday.  Fancy name.  Sounds official.  I explained to her a couple of problems that I have been having, namely how do I submit invoices?  She said that she would send me some information and a video to watch.  She sent nothing.  I still can't figure out how to submit invoices.  If the deadline for weekly submissions is still Sunday night at midnight, then I will miss that deadline.  I went 5 weeks out of work with zero revenue.  And the three weeks prior to that were the deadest weeks that I have ever experienced in the 38 years that I have been in business.  Until they help me get this stupid platform up and running, as far as I'm concerned, they are suspended.  When they get this mess straightened out, I'll resume handling calls. 

[thtdon]

I am starting to get the hang of Swoop.  Actual Swoop calls are processed differently than Agero calls.  Same rates.  Just different processing.  Swoop sends out all kinds of calls that I can't do, mostly way out of my area.  I got a Swoop request at 6 o'clock this morning to change a flat tire in Salisbury, MA.  Salisbury is way out of my regular service area.  They indicated on the message that they were going to pay me $41 and change to do the call.  I don't know how they justify the "change".  Are they paying us by the inch now?  They are going to have to pay me more than that to get me to go to Salisbury.  So I clicked "rejected"  Then you go to another screen.  There is a list of reasons why the call was rejected.  I clicked "out of area".  I save all of the rejected calls in a separate email file.  I will soon have enough rejected call sheets to wallpaper my kitchen.  No matter what they claim, these rejected calls are held against me.  When you go on that page with the red and green pie charts, the chart on the lower left tells you how many calls you rejected, and how much money it represents.  I's an outrageous number.  There is no way I rejected that many local calls.  I get a lot of requests to go to Portsmouth, NH, which is over 40 miles away.  Also, Exeter, NH, Chester, NH, Ipswich, MA, etc.  The out of area requests are worse than ever.  At least during the day, I am awake.  These out of area calls at 2:00am are suck. 

 

Meanwhile, I continue to decline to carry passengers in the truck.  I was out of work for 5 weeks, quarantined in my house, because I caught the corona virus.  That's 5 weeks with practically no revenue.  There is no way that I will take a chance of getting that again.  I always wear my mask.  I wash my hands constantly.  And I wear latex gloves.  I was doing that right from the beginning.  But I got the virus anyway.  I had some work done on the flatbed.  The exhaust pipe that connects the manifold to the muffler had a hole in it.  It was loud.  And the cab was filling up with hot exhaust.  In order to change that pipe, we had to remove the "doghouse cover" to access the pipe.  And we had to remove the passenger seat so the mechanic had some place to lay.  I still haven't put the seat back.  I am having it cleaned, before I put it back.  Maybe I won't put it back.  Maybe a refrigerator will be more useful, LOL!

[Old Tow]

I'm like you, we take NO riders, I don't need to catch that stuff at 83 years old. The companies have a notice right on their we site that says no riders. Sorry to hear you had the Virus, are you better now Don?? 

[GRUMPS The Towman]

The only thing that seems to have changed with this agero/swoop crap is their app that i had to install on my phone KILLS my battery 10x's faster. Supposidly, with said app they now know where i am at all times right? So why the F%#k do I still get inundated with b.s. calls that are easily over an hour away from me at the minimum?? Do they really think I am going to travel 60-100 + miles to do a 2 mile tow or change out a flat?? Is there really any providers out there that do?? And if so, Please explain how you can justify doing it and make money.. As far as riders??? The answer is NO. PERIOD.  

[Old Tow]

Truth Grumps !

 

[thtdon]

Old Tow, at 83, you are at the highest level of danger.  We quarantined my mother, who will be 93 on Saturday, since the beginning of March.  I hadn't come in contact with her until 2 weeks ago.  We couldn't take any chances.  Be safe.

[Old Tow]

On 7/1/2020 at 7:48 PM, thtdon said:

Old Tow, at 83, you are at the highest level of danger.  We quarantined my mother, who will be 93 on Saturday, since the beginning of March.  I hadn't come in contact with her until 2 weeks ago.  We couldn't take any chances.  Be safe.

yeah Don I know what you went through from a friend of mine that caught the virus. Talking about retirement, i tried that at 65, then again at 70, and now at 83 I still go out at night and change tires once in a while. However.... With my SS check and the pay I get from the Church for preaching (goin on 35 years now) I still need the money from towing to pay all the bills when my wife died 10 years ago. Don't get me started on doctors or Hospitals....ripppp off artists.

 

Stay Safe Pardner and NO RIDERS

[Eastendtow 66]

we got a email from agero that in the next month or two agero calls dispatched by swoop that you will no longer can bill on agero website has to be billed on swoop and road america calls will be switching to swoop in six to seven months to 

[Old Tow]

On 7/3/2020 at 6:22 AM, Eastendtow 66 said:

we got a email from agero that in the next month or two agero calls dispatched by swoop that you will no longer can bill on agero website has to be billed on swoop and road america calls will be switching to swoop in six to seven months to 

Well that explains why my wife can not get paid for a Swoop call. Guess we will just have to eat it.... Darn that makes me mad !!

[thtdon]

I don't know how many of their clients are getting dispatched on the Swoop platform.  I believe that Audi and Nissan are.  And I believe that there is an insurance company that's on it.  I'm sure that there are others.  But I only submit a couple calls a week through the Swoop site.  The rest of the calls are submitted on the old Agero site. 

[Eastendtow 66]

The email they sent said you can only bill on swoop billing sight is not true agero bills sent by swoop must be entered on agero site swoop bills must be bill on swoop site only rates are set the same unless you up them on swoop we set them a little bit higher and they are paying it