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Fleet maintenance costs are rising even for fleets with stable mileage and vehicle counts, driven by a combination of inflation, higher parts prices, technician shortages, aging vehicles, and increasing vehicle complexity. While many of these factors are outside a fleet’s direct control, leaders can still reduce their impact by shifting from reactive to preventive maintenance, improving data visibility, managing downtime strategically, and optimizing vehicle replacement cycles. With the right mix of data, planning, and strong vendor partnerships, fleets can contain costs, reduce downtime, and protect long-term total cost of ownership.
External pressures are real: Inflation, parts shortages, and supply-chain volatility continue to push fleet maintenance costs higher.
Labour is a major cost driver: Technician shortages and rising wages have made labour one of the fastest-growing maintenance expenses.
Aging fleets cost more to maintain: Delayed vehicle replacement leads to more frequent and complex repairs as assets age.
Preventive maintenance saves money: Fleets that use scheduled, data-driven maintenance avoid costly breakdowns and downtime.
External pressures are real: Inflation, parts shortages, and supply-chain volatility continue to push fleet maintenance costs higher.
Labour is a major cost driver: Technician shortages and rising wages have made labour one of the fastest-growing maintenance expenses.
Aging fleets cost more to maintain: Delayed vehicle replacement leads to more frequent and complex repairs as assets age.
Preventive maintenance saves money: Fleets that use scheduled, data-driven maintenance avoid costly breakdowns and downtime.
If there’s one question our maintenance team hears most often, it’s this:
“Why are my maintenance costs going up?”
It’s a fair question, especially when your fleet size hasn’t changed, mileage is steady, but fleet management costs keep creeping up.
The short answer? You’re not imagining it. According to the J.D. Power 2024 Canada Customer Service Index, the average cost of a service/repair visit in Canada increased by about 7.6 % at dealerships and 4.2 % at independent shops compared to the previous year. Across industries, maintenance costs have been climbing for several years and are now driven by a mix of forces both inside and outside your control.
This post breaks down the key drivers behind the rise and, more importantly, what fleet and business leaders can do about it.
In the simplest terms, everything that goes into maintaining a vehicle is more expensive today than it was a few years ago.
Parts and materials: Inflation and sporadic supply-chain disruptions have pushed the cost of parts higher and delayed deliveries, forcing many fleets to pay premiums or keep vehicles idle while waiting for parts.
Raw materials: Steel, rubber, and other core commodities saw price volatility during and after the pandemic and while some pressures have eased, costs haven’t fully retreated.
Even as overall inflation starts to ease, parts shortages and supply issues are still keeping maintenance costs higher than many fleets expect.
Experienced, trained technicians are essential but they’re also in short supply.
Shortage of skilled techs: The fleet and automotive industries have fewer trained technicians entering the workforce than needed, creating strong upward pressure on hourly labour rates.
Wage increases and turnover costs: Inflation doesn’t just affect parts. It affects people. As wages rise across the economy, technicians’ pay and benefits do too, and shops pass that on to fleets through higher labour rates.
Because there simply aren’t enough technicians to go around, labour has become one of the single fastest-growing maintenance cost components.
A trend affecting many businesses is keeping vehicles on the road longer than originally planned.
Why?
Higher acquisition costs and extended delivery times for new vehicles encouraged many fleets to delay replacements, effectively aging their fleets beyond what initial plans anticipated.
An older vehicle often requires more frequent parts replacement, more complex repairs, and has a higher chance of major failures. Across the U.S., the average age of cars and light trucks has steadily climbed, reaching a record 12.8 years in 2025. This means there are more vehicles are in that age range where repair and maintenance costs naturally rise.
One driver that’s both visible and controllable is how maintenance gets executed.
When maintenance is deferred until something breaks rather than addressing early warning signs is a sure-fire way to compound costs. Here’s why:
What could have been a routine brake or suspension check turns into a more expensive repair when related components fail.
Unscheduled downtime leads to lost productivity, emergency rental vehicles, and more pressure on the shop.
Maintenance professionals we talked to consistently point out that skipping recommended service intervals almost always results in higher total costs down the road.
Today’s vehicles are as much electronic as they are mechanical. Advanced systems such as advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), emission controls, and telematics require:
Specialized diagnostic tools
Technical expertise to calibrate
More time on the lift
This complexity increases both the labour required and the cost of certain repairs, especially when sensors or safety-related modules are involved.
Understanding why costs are rising is just the first step. The real game-changer is how you mitigate the impact of those rising costs. Here are practical, leadership-focused strategies that work:
Data shows that fleets emphasizing routine inspections and scheduled servicing spend less on emergency repairs and unscheduled breakdowns.
Why it matters:
Preventive maintenance catches small issues before they escalate.
A planned oil change or brake pad replacement is almost always cheaper than a full component overhaul.
Visibility is power. When you know:
Which vehicles cost more
Which routes cause the most wear
Which repairs recur
…you can make targeted decisions about replacement, routing, and servicing.
Use your maintenance management system to track trends. This enables smarter scheduling and more efficient use of shop time.
Downtime equals lost revenue. So take steps to:
Reduce turnaround time at the shop
Bundle maintenance where possible
Schedule service during expected downtime (nights, weekends)
Every hour off the road costs more than direct maintenance dollars.
If vehicles are costing more in repairs than in depreciation, it might be time to adjust your replacement strategy.
Data helps you balance:
Extending life for financial reasons
Replacing vehicles before maintenance costs spike
This prevents letting an aging asset become a cost sink.
With technician shortages and parts delays, having reliable partners matters more than ever.
Consider:
Preferred vendor agreements
Volume contracts
Joint planning for parts availability
Strong relationships can reduce lead times and stabilize rates.
Maintenance costs across industries have shifted from predictable, modest increases to a more dynamic and higher-cost environment, driven by labour, parts, supply, inflation, and aging fleets.
But rising costs don’t have to mean runaway budgets.
Fleet leaders who combine data, preventive strategies, strong processes, and strategic replacement decisions find they can bend the cost curve , or at least keep it from biting deeper into margins.
The question isn’t just why your costs are going up. It’s what you can do today to keep them from going up more tomorrow.
Want to understand what’s driving maintenance costs in your fleet? Connect with our team to review your maintenance data, identify where costs are coming from, and explore practical strategies to reduce downtime and total cost of ownership.