Today, Jack from Sioux Falls Dent Repair gives us a detailed look into how they go about writing a hail damage estimate, we will call it Hail damage estimating 101. Every PDR case is different and requires skilled technicians to assess the damage and come up with a correct estimate.
First Things First
The first thing we do in the shop is get the damaged area cleaned thoroughly so that we can see all the dents, dings, and scuffs easily. After the panel is cleaned, we use specialized PDR lights to get a better look at the surface. In this case, the vehicle we’re looking at is a 2017 Ford F150 and it is a relatively new car with just over 1,700 miles on it. As you can see, the PDR lights allow us to see all the dents and dings in the hood of this truck.
Every dent we find is circled first so that we don’t miss out on any damage later on. Then we use special sizing coins to determine the size of each dent. The coins range from quarter size to half dollar size and is placed in the dent to see how big or small it is. From the information we get with the coin sizing, we can go ahead and get the correct pricing as well. When we come up against a dent that is bigger than a half dollar, we mark it with “OS” which stands for oversized and we price those dents accordingly as well.
We found a total of 132 quarter sized dents and 7 oversized ones. Along with that, another thing we took into consideration when pricing the repair for this truck was that it was made from aluminum. Also, the underside of the hood was almost completely braced which means we had very little access to the damaged area with our regular tools. With this in mind, we had to use the glue pulling technique to get most of the damage out.
Some Things Need To Be Taken Apart
As you can see, as indicated with the letters R&I (remove and install), we also had to remove the headlight and the fender flare to take out the damage from the fenders on both sides of the vehicle.
If you have any questions or queries about hail damage or want some information on what we do here at Sioux Falls Dent Repair,
In today’s video, Jack takes us through a hail damage estimate for a 2015 Honda Fit that came into the Sioux Falls Dent Repair shop. As you can see, the damage is quite severe and even caused the paint in the roof to crack in multiple spots.
For the customer to claim their insurance, we needed to take photographs and even mark off the severely damaged areas. The car itself, as you can see, is covered in “oversized” dents which are indicated with “X” marks. In terms of size, an oversized dent is any dent that is larger than a half dollar coin.
The roof and hood were written as replacement pieces because of the severity of the damage and that is what we used to write up our estimate. The dents are all across the body of the car and has even caused the paint to crack in many spots. In some spots, the glass will also have to be removed and reinstalled once the job is complete.
Unfortunately, once the estimate is made, the car is going to be a complete loss for the customer and they will have the option to either get reimbursed or buy it back and get it fixed afterwards. The customer also has a tow hitch attached to the front of the vehicle which means that it will have to be removed and will be included in the eventual cost. We also came across a hairline dent between the side mirror and the frame of the vehicle which will need work. Also, there are signs of previous PDR work on this car, but it isn’t complete and isn’t a good job either.
So, that is how we at Sioux Falls Dent Repair go about writing up an estimate for hail damaged car. We mark off the larger dents and any extreme damage, we take to a body shop for repair or replacement.
Watch the whole process here:
If you have any hail damage that you want us to take a look at, go ahead and call or text us at 605-250-1023.
Do you have no hail damage insurance on your recently hail damaged vehicle?
Here we walk through some of your options when you have no hail damage insurance on your vehicle. We go though all of your different options for repair types. From a full repair claim and fixing all of those prior dents and dings. From big to small we can fix them all. Just contact us today about your vehicles hail damage!
Have more questions? Want to schedule your repair?
Today Jack Bucknell our ARC Master Hail Certified technician at Sioux Falls Dent Repair will be discussing hail damage estimating. This was a Facebook Live video for hail damage estimating. We are a professional auto hail damage repair company located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. We have recently had a ton of hail damage repair claims from around the area including the other side of the state in the Black Hills, Rapid City and Spearfish. We wanted to take a moment and discuss how we go about processing all of the damage for repairs.
Should I submit my own photos and videos to my insurance?
No, while your insurance company will need photo documentation in order to process your claim. It is extremely important for you to have your vehicle looked at by a professional with professional lighting in the right conditions. A professional with these conditions will be able to write a much more accurate assessment of your vehicles damage.
There are multiple Dent Repair Estimating software companies available. The one we choose is Mobile Tech Rx. We had a chance to see about some of the new and upcoming features at the 2019 Mobile Tech Expo in Las Vegas.
New Features in Mobile Tech Rx
Jack Bucknell, a paintless dent repair technician with us at Sioux Falls Dent Repair had some time to chat with the crew at Mobile Tech Rx while at the 2019 Mobile Tech Expo in Las Vegas. They discussed with us some of the newest features in their auto reconditioning program. We personally use this software for our paintless dent repair invoicing and estimating and it works fantastic.
If you’re into running business numbers you are in luck. They now have an analytics feature where you can break down every category in your business and track everything. It is mind blowing what you can now do and track in your business.
