Dive Brief:
- Parts and labor costs both rose 1.9% in Q3, according to a report from the American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council and service management tech firm Decisiv.
- The increases occurred across 18 Vehicle Maintenance Reporting Standards codes quarter over quarter, according to a late January news release.
- “On a year-over-year basis, parts costs are up 0.9% and labor costs rose 4.9% for a total combined increase of 2.5%,” the news release said.
Dive Insight:
Technician wages have climbed recently amid a tech shortage and challenges obtaining parts have caused shops to seek components outside their regular channels, according to American Transportation Research Institute reports.
“Despite running fewer miles to handle lower freight volumes and the influx of less repair intensive new trucks, fleets and service providers are still challenged by inflationary cost pressures on parts prices and higher labor costs,” Decisiv President and CEO Dick Hyatt said in the news release.
Costs particularly jumped in recent years. A spokesperson for TMC said the upticks in recent years could be attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain issues.
But in 2023, upticks slowed. On a quarter-to-quarter basis in Q1, expenses for parts dropped and labor stabilized, according to the TMC. Both areas decreased in Q2 quarter to quarter.
