If the geotech says "Allowable bearing load" - then I would not consider the weight of the pile as he "must

have" figured it in.

MJ Tomlinson states (Foundation Design and Construction, 6th Ed): "At the limit state . . . the
ultimate bearing capacity of a pile is given by the equation "Qp = Qs + Qt - Wp" . . . Usually Wp
is small in relation to QP and is is often neglected because it is not much greater than the
weight of the displaced soil. However, it must be taken into account for marine piling where a
considerable proportion of the pile length extends above the sea-bed." He goes on to talk about
Eurocode 7 where they talk about design bearing capacity rather than the ultimate value.

Obtaining the design pile load

The self-weight of the pile should be included in F c;d, along with downdrag however the
common practice of assuming that the weight of the pile is balanced by that of the overburden
allowing both to be excluded from Fcd and Rcd is permitted, where appropriate
The pile weight may not cancel the weight of the overburden if
a) Downdrag is significant
b) The soil is light
c) The pile extends above the ground surface