Written by Matt Reed Sponsored by Ford Pro Published on October 5, 2026 Vehicle maintenance is one of the biggest financial challenges for modern fleet managers.When a single vehicle breaks down, it costs an average of $2,491 to repair. Compounding these costs, vehicle downtime means that your business is unable to complete further deliveries while the vehicle(s) in question is out of service.Meanwhile, the fee for more than a whole year’s worth of preventative maintenance is just $1,481 per vehicle.Why, then, do 12% of companies still operate on a reactive basis?In association with Ford, The True Cost of Vehicle Downtime & How You Can Prevent It unpacks the true scale of vehicle maintenance — and the substantial savings that fleet managers can make by switching to a proactive approach that keeps your vehicles on the road for longer. Key Takeaways 12% of businesses are not performing any preventative maintenance, despite the substantial cost savings that it can incur.Scheduled/preventative maintenance is the most effective strategy for avoiding downtime, which is one of the most impactful factors of fleet management.The second and third-most important strategies for reducing downtime are partnering with a reliable third-party repair service (63%), hiring an in-house mechanic (60%), and completing pre-and-post-trip vehicle checklists (60%).To build a culture of strong driver accountability, it’s important to consistently assign drivers to the same vehicle (25%).47% of respondents agree that the best tactic to minimize vehicle recovery time is to keep a reserve vehicle to cover the gap.Other recommendations include calling multiple repair shops for an appointment (15%), renting a vehicle until the truck has been repaired (13%), and offering financial incentives to drivers (9%). Read The Full Expert Market Vehicle Downtime Report For even more information, download our full Vehicle Downtime report here Sponsored by Ford Pro Written by: Matt Reed Senior Communications and Logistics Expert Matt Reed is a Senior Communications and Logistics Expert at Expert Market. Adept at evaluating products, he focuses mainly on assessing fleet management and business communication software. Matt began his career in technology publishing with Expert Reviews, where he spent several years putting the latest audio-related products and releases through their paces, revealing his findings in transparent, in-depth articles and guides. Holding a Master’s degree in Journalism from City, University of London, Matt is no stranger to diving into challenging topics and summarising them into practical, helpful information. Sponsored by: Ford Pro Sponsoring Partner Ford Pro Vehicle Services And Distribution: Redefining Transportation Value For Commercial Customers Ford, which already helps commercial customers “own work” with the world’s most popular pickup trucks and vans, plans to redefine success for those customers with Ford Pro – a global vehicle services and distribution business that will increase uptime and reduce ownership costs, leading to higher productivity and performance.