DES MOINES, Iowa — Tariffs mean more expensive car repairs according to local auto shops.

Joe Burch, the owner of Burch Auto Repair in Valley Junction, said auto part suppliers are already starting to see tariff induced price hikes.

“They’ll see at first for sure. Eventually, it’ll be passed to me and then it’ll be passed on to the owners of the vehicles,” Burch said.

Burch said that for now only the cost of parts will increase, but labor could follow.

“It’s mainly the part prices are going to be going up. Things like labor, things like labor are going to take a lot longer to change just because the only reason the labor would increase is that cost of living goes up,” Burch said.

Burch said drivers should take their cars for scheduled maintenance to prevent expensive repair bills down the road.

“The best things that you can do to help offset this and avoid some of the sticker shock of sudden repairs like this would be maintenance, making sure that you’re getting maintenance,” Burch said.

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