If you live in an area of the country where hail storms are common, you’re all too familiar with the vehicle damage they can cause. Vehicle hail damage can range in severity depending on the intensity of the hail storm, but thankfully, following some of these best practices can get your vehicle fixed and back on the road again quickly. For starters, here are some potentially costly mistakes to avoid after your car gets dinged by hail.
Ignoring Hail Damage
For less severe hail storms, oftentimes the damage may not seem that bad to the untrained eye. Some vehicle owners may be tempted to ignore the pockmarked imperfections across the hood, roof and trunk. However, that’s no excuse to ignore the damage. Hail damage can lower the resale value of your car, truck, motorcycle or more by thousands of dollars. If you were to get in a collision afterward, the cost of repairs compared against the lowered vehicle value may cause your insurance company to total the vehicle prematurely. When you spot the first signs of hail damage on your vehicle, it’s important to take action right away.
Waiting Until the End of Hail Season for Repairs
It may hail again before the end of the season, but that doesn’t mean you should wait to have your vehicle hail damage repaired. Leaving hail damage as is could mean the next storm exacerbates it. As a result, you could end up with damaged paint, bigger dents and a more expensive repair bill. If the second hail storm ends up cracking the vehicle paint, you’ll be forced to get either replacement panels or the damaged section filled in and repainted with costly conventional methods. That’s why you shouldn’t wait until hail season is over before investing in dent removal.
Failing to File an Insurance Claim
Calling your insurance agent doesn’t have to be the first thing you do after sustaining car hail damage. That said, you shouldn’t avoid filing a claim for fear of your premiums increasing. Unlike collisions, hailstorms are hardly your fault – they’re considered acts of nature that are covered under comprehensive auto insurance policies. Not taking advantage of your insurance policy to offset the cost of hail damage repair means that you’ll pay more out of pocket. When in doubt, do whatever you can to offset vehicle repair costs. Try to ensure your claims adjuster’s repair estimate matches the average anticipated repair costs by receiving an estimate from a reputable local dent repair company.
Choosing Traditional Dent Repair Instead of PDR
Paintless dent repair (PDR) is one of the most effective methods of hail damage repair you can invest in. Not only is this process efficient and non-damaging to your car’s valuable paint, but it’s also much faster and more cost-effective than traditional methods of dent repair. Traditional dent repair often requires leaving your car in the shop for a week on average while waiting for prepping, filling, repainting and finishing work to be completed. When you want to save money and time and wish to restore your vehicle’s value, PDR is the way to go.
Vehicle hail repair can be an expensive venture if you fail to file a claim, choose traditional methods, wait to get the damage repaired or avoid the problem altogether. Don’t let these mistakes cost you even more money than you need to spend! For all of your vehicle dent repair needs, PDR questions and a free hail damage repair estimate, don’t hesitate to contact us at Dent Shop today.