CAPE CORAL, Fla. — Have you looked at your tires lately? Chances are they could have a nail or screw in them, and you may not know it until it’s too late.

Tire shops in Southwest Florida say they have been extremely busy repairing flat tires, which has become a very costly problem for drivers.

Melissa Briggs of Cape Coral discovered a nail in one of her perfectly good tires, and a mechanic found a nail in her tire.

“That’s not good. I thought I was coming in for a quick patch, but now I have to change the whole tire now,” Briggs said.

ABC7 posted the dilemma on Facebook, and dozens of people shared similar experiences.

Danny said he had four nails in three tires so far in northeast Cape Coral.

This is not unusual, according to manager of the Tire Choice, Josh Harvel.

“50% of the time, they have more than one object in their tire,” Harvel noted.

He said the tire shop is seeing about 10 people each day coming in for tire repairs.

Tires Plus along Hancock Bridge Parkway in Cape Coral said they’re also being kept busy, reporting about 75 people weekly are coming in for tire punctures.

Cordero Kromer of Cape Coral found a large chunk of sharp cement, shaped like an arrowhead, had pierced the tire on his vehicle. Even worse, he said it’s not his first time at the tire shop.

“Honestly, it’s the second one in the last three months. I already had to change two tires earlier,” Kromer said.

It’s become a costly expense for many drivers forced to pay hundreds of dollars for a new tire.