When and Why Paintless Dent Repair Is Suitable for Hail Damage

Tony Mers • September 1, 2020

When your car sustains hail damage, you should seek dent repair services from an auto body shop. For a car damaged by hail, paintless dent repair may be the best fix, depending on the extent of the damage. Here’s how a technician will decide on the best repair method for a car damaged by hail.

The Severity of the Hail Damage

When you take your car to an auto body shop, the technicians will closely scrutinize the damages on your car before repairing dents from hail. They will be checking to see if the dents have caused creases and cracks in your car’s paint. Some hail damages cause large dents on your car, thereby disturbing the factory finish. When this is the case, you may have to resort to replacing parts of your car to avoid further damage.

Paintless dent repair works best on hail damage that hasn't compromised your car’s paint. For the most part, small hailstones will cause damages that are easily repaired. In the vast majority of cases, paintless dent repair is the appropriate solution for hail damage.

The Location of the Hail Damage

Some panels of your car may not be accessible depending on the design, material, and shape. For PDR technicians to fix the hail dents on your car, they need to access the dents from the back through the underside of the damaged panel. Once they reach the dents, they use specialist tools to tap and massage the dents back to their original position. Alternatively, they can use a pulling method where they glue a special piece of plastic to the dent and then pull it with a gripping tool, in effect, pulling the panel back to its proper position.

As such, a paintless dent repair technician has to be able to temporarily remove the interior panels and moldings, so that they can reach the dents from behind, or use the glue pulling method. When the dents from hail are on your car’s roof, hood, doors, front fenders, and quarter panels, it will be easier for your paintless dent repair technician to fix the dents.

Why Is Paintless Dent Repair Effective?

A recent survey found that about 77% of cars need repair or maintenance. Dent repair necessitated by hail damage accounts for a substantial number of these repairs. For a car damaged by hail, paintless dent repair is the most effective because it is non-invasive, time and cost-efficient, and preserves the original car paint. A paintless dent removal technician is best placed to advise you on the most appropriate method to fix your car’s hail damage. Because PDR doesn’t disturb your car’s original factory paint, it preserves the value of your car. In case you decided to sell your car after paintless dent removal, the car will fetch a higher price as it will still look new.

Any car damaged by hail will find great results with paintless dent repair. Whether your car’s hail damage needs paintless dent repair services or collision repair services, our team at River North Collision Repair is here to help.

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