Carriers can improve maintenance benchmarking by separating tractor, trailer, and shop-related costs in the general ledger and applying consistent allocation rules to expenses shared across equipment types.
Why Standardized Maintenance Data Matters
Maintenance is one of the most important operating costs in trucking, but it is often difficult to compare across carriers because general ledger structures vary widely. Some companies combine tractor and trailer repairs, while others mix parts, labor, outside-vendor work, and shop overhead in the same accounts.
Standardizing these expenses creates a more useful view of fleet performance. It allows management to identify which equipment categories are driving cost, compare results with FreightMarks peers, and make better repair-versus-replace and staffing decisions.
Key Maintenance Categories and Data Points
Tractor Maintenance
Tractor maintenance includes parts, tires, outside repair services, internal repair labor, and warranty recoveries related to power equipment. FreightMarks identifies this as Data Category 12.
Typical tractor maintenance expense ranges from $0.08 to $0.26 per mile, or approximately 2.5% to 10% of revenue. Differences can reflect fleet age, equipment specifications, trade cycles, maintenance practices, and the amount of work completed internally.
Trailer Maintenance
Trailer maintenance includes parts, tires, outside services, and other repairs associated with the trailer fleet. It is classified as Data Category 14.
FreightMarks results generally range from $0.02 to $0.50 per mile, or 1% to 3.5% of revenue. Trailer mix, trailer-to-tractor ratio, average age, and specialized equipment can all affect the result.
Maintenance Wages and Overhead
Maintenance wages and overhead include technician compensation, payroll taxes and benefits, shop supervision, utilities, tools, supplies, and other expenses required to operate the maintenance function. These costs are included in Data Category 16.
The FreightMarks range is generally $0.02 to $0.07 per mile, or 1% to 5.1% of revenue. Keeping these expenses separate from parts and outside repair costs provides a clearer picture of the economics of an internal shop.
Allocation Recommendations
Direct assignment is the preferred method whenever an expense can be tied to a specific tractor, trailer, or operating group. When direct assignment is not possible, carriers should use an operating ratio that reflects how the cost is incurred.
For example, shared shop costs can be allocated using tractor and trailer counts, repair orders, labor hours, or miles. Ratio-based allocation is more responsive to operational changes than a fixed percentage.
When the supporting operational data is not available, a documented percentage method is an acceptable alternative. A carrier might allocate a combined maintenance account 85% to tractors and 15% to trailers, then revisit that assumption as better information becomes available.
Improve Granularity Over Time
A carrier does not need to rebuild its entire chart of accounts at once. It can begin with the largest distinctions and add detail as processes improve.
At a minimum, the general ledger should distinguish:
- Tractor maintenance from trailer maintenance.
- Internal labor from parts and outside services.
- Tires from other repair costs when material.
- Warranty recoveries from gross maintenance expense.
- Maintenance wages and overhead from direct repair costs.
Consistent coding is more valuable than excessive detail that cannot be maintained. Accounting and maintenance personnel should agree on definitions and review account mappings periodically.
Repair Revenue
Some carrier shops perform work for owner-operators, affiliated companies, or outside customers. Revenue and related costs from that activity should be recorded in a separate repair profit center.
Separating repair revenue prevents third-party activity from reducing the apparent cost of maintaining company equipment. It also allows the carrier to determine whether the repair operation itself is profitable.
Best Practices for GL Mapping
The bare-minimum mapping approach is to create distinct accounts for tractor maintenance, trailer maintenance, maintenance labor and overhead, and repair revenue. Carriers should also separate company-equipment costs from expenses associated with owner-operators or other business segments.
The objective is not accounting complexity for its own sake. It is a repeatable structure that produces comparable results from month to month and supports meaningful FreightMarks benchmarking.
Drive Clarity, Cut Costs
When maintenance accounts are consistently defined and allocated, carriers can see whether costs are driven by equipment age, repair practices, shop staffing, or vendor spending. That clarity gives management a better basis for controlling costs and planning equipment investments.