Rising tariffs push up fleet costs

Rising tariffs — and the potential for more tariff-related fees — could represent a significant cost increase for fleet managers and dealers. 

Fleet Advantage advises ordering trucks before May 30, 2025, to avoid tariff-related fees and upcoming OEM price increases, as trucks scheduled for production by May 16 are protected, according to an April 8 Fleet Advantage release.  

Acting within this window could save organizations more than $4 million on 100 trucks, with additional custom savings available through consultation, Brian Antonellis, senior vice president of fleet operations at the fleet management and leasing firm, told Equipment Finance News.  

“Nobody wants to pay an extra $3,000 to $4,000, but at least it’s a known commodity right now, and we know exactly what it’s going to cost you,” he said. “When you think about past those May dates into the June and July, it’s whatever comes out in the next letter from the OEM, which hasn’t come out yet, or a straight percentage or cheaper, and that seems to change every day.” 

Fleet Advantage also continues to maintain communication with the truck OEMs to better understand what awaits fleet customers and dealers, Antonellis said. 

Returns lift asset values

The return of rentals and leases, especially in the international market, could help asset values, Scott Nelson, president and chief technology officer at St. Paul, Minn.-based Tamarack Technology, an equipment finance software provider, told EFN. 

“Most of this tariff discussion is about increasing pricing and reducing availability, both of which lift asset value, so there’s an argument to be made here that everybody is already instantiated in the market,” he said. “If you’ve got a lot of leases out on a bunch of trucks that are going to be coming from a tariff country, the value of your portfolio has just gone up because of the lack of availability.” 

While there continues to be uncertainty around tariffs, the likelihood of some form of them remains, Daniel Fisher, senior vice president, government and external affairs at Associated Equipment Distributors, said during an April 16 webinar. 

“It’s hard to predict,” he said. “It would be safe … it would be most cautious to prepare for that 10% tariff level remain indefinitely.” 

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