What is keying damage on a car?
A line that crosses more than one panel is priced by how many panels it touches, not how long it is. A shop cannot spray half a door. So a thin scratch across three panels is three panels of work.
What kind of repair does it need?
Painting each panel it crosses. How deep it goes decides the cost for each panel. Touching a panel at all puts the whole panel in the job.
Each panel is painted and blended into the ones beside it. Ask whether the price per panel drops as the count rises. Ask for a price for each panel and for the set.
What to do next
Photograph the whole length before anything is touched. Get a police report number to give your insurer. Compare your excess with what that many panels will cost. Malicious damage is covered by comprehensive policies. Ask your insurer whether it affects your no claim bonus. Ask whether they treat it as an at-fault claim if nobody is caught.
Sources
- National Cover Insurance (Australia)insurer
Australian comprehensive policies cover weather-related damage from storms, hail, floods, and falling trees or branches.
- Progressive Insuranceinsurer
Comprehensive coverage protects against non-collision events that are outside of your control like car theft , car vandalism , and severe weather…
- BASFpaint maker
BASF recommends blending into an adjacent undamaged panel whenever the panel…
- Chemical Guysproduct seller
If you catch the scratch with your fingernail, it likely extends into the paint layer.
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