Combined Parts and Labor Rose in the Third Quarter of 2025
Combined Parts and Labor Rose in the Third Quarter of 2025
New Report from TMC and Decisiv Reveals Reversal of Previous Quarterly Trends
Washington – A new report from American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council and Decisiv Inc. indicated parts and labor costs rose in the third quarter of 2025.
After falling for three quarters, in Q3 2025 combined parts and labor costs in the Decisiv/TMC Parts & Labor Service Benchmark Report increased by 3.7 percent. The Quarter-over-Quarter (QoQ) combined costs increase was seen in both 4.8 percent higher parts costs and a 2.0 percent rise in labor expenses. In the latest quarter, QoQ parts and labor cost increases also represented a reversal of previous quarterly decreases.
Combined parts and labor costs increased 1.7 percent Year-over-Year (YoY), continuing the upward trend in the two previous quarters. Parts and labor costs also rose YoY by 2.5 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively. The higher combined costs in latest report marked the third quarterly YoY increase in a row.
Higher costs across the board in Q3 2025 may be a reflection of several industry trends. Combined cost increases could indicate that fleet right sizing and the recent closures of carriers are aligning capacity with freight demand and in turn driving up mileage and consequently service needs for existing equipment. Increases in parts and labor costs would naturally stem from higher mileage and utilization rates while ongoing technician shortage pressures are likely another cause of rising labor expenses.
In Q3 2025, combined parts and labor cost increases were recorded in 17 of the 25 VMRS Systems tracked in the Decisiv TMC Benchmark Report, the same number of system increases in the previous quarter. QoQ parts cost rose in 17 VMRS Systems, one more than in Q2 and labor costs were up in 15 systems matching the previous quarterly analysis.
YoY, combined parts and labor costs were higher in 15 VMRS Systems, two fewer than in the previous quarter. Parts and labor costs were both higher in 15 systems, down from 18 for parts and 19 for labor expenses in the previous YoY analysis.
“Increasing costs in the Decisiv/TMC Parts & Labor Service Benchmark Report in Q3 2025 point to the impact of increased vehicle utilization, a sign that carriers are aligning capacity with freight demand,” said Tim Hardin, president and CEO of Decisiv. “As mileage increases, so does the demand for equipment service. However, with strong management practices, fleets are well positioned to meet this challenge effectively.”
The Decisiv/TMC Parts & Labor Service Benchmark is based on comprehensive service data. For the report, Decisiv collects and analyzes parts and labor costs for 25 VMRS system level codes, which accounts for more than 97 percent of total parts and labor spent on costs more than seven million assets during over 300,000 monthly maintenance and repair events at more than 5,000 service locations.
“While the data on various parts and labor categories indicates increasing costs for fleets, the information provided by the Decisiv/TMC Parts & Labor Service Benchmark helps provide Council members an excellent means of comparing how their operations are performing to industry trends so they can take action accordingly to changing industry conditions,” said TMC Executive Director Robert Braswell.
TMC issues the reports to its fleet members. The reports are organized based on the Council’s VMRS, sorted by VMRS-coded vehicle systems and geographic location.
TMC fleet members will receive the report electronically via email. For more information on joining TMC, call (703) 838-1763 or visit http://tmc.trucking.org.
By providing leadership support and opportunities to collaborate, TMC helps members develop the industry’s best practices that address the critical truck technology and maintenance issues that have the greatest impact on truck fleets. For nearly 70 years, TMC’s member-driven Recommended Maintenance and Engineering Practices have been setting the standards that help trucking companies specify and maintain their fleets more effectively. Follow TMC on X, LinkedIn and Facebook.
Virginia-based Decisiv is the provider of the largest asset service management ecosystem for the commercial vehicle industry. The Decisiv Service Relationship Management (SRM) platform is the foundation for the nearly 5,000 service locations across North America that manage more than 4 million service and repair events for commercial vehicles annually. Through Decisiv’s SRM platform, dealers, service providers, manufacturers, and fleet and asset managers can communicate and collaborate during every service event. The SRM solution streamlines the entire asset service management process bringing all the necessary diagnostic, telematics and asset information together for all participants, and delivers it at the point of service. This level of connectivity and collaboration drives an unrivaled level of service performance and asset optimization that gets trucks back on the road faster so fleets see higher revenue per asset and lower costs. Service providers using SRM establish efficient communication, better controls and increased productivity in service operations that enable them to become trusted partners to fleets. For manufacturers, SRM enhances the value of service networks and provides data and analytics to help develop more reliable and efficient commercial assets. For more information, visit www.decisiv.com.
American Trucking Associations is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry. Through a federation of 50 affiliated state trucking associations and industry-related conferences and councils, ATA is the voice of the industry America depends on most to move our nation’s freight. Follow ATA on X or Facebook. Nothing Without Trucking.