How to fix this half inch dent?

[cachehit]

The door was dented by the next car. Fortunately, the owner of the next car gave me his phone number. This is the dent.

So, I'm not sure how much it costs. It's about a half inch, but I'm seeing a clear dent. It's not a just paint issue. Since I leased my car, I have to pay some recovery fee.

Anyone who has some idea of the cost?

(I'm in SF Bay Area.)

 

[miimura]

It will probably be more than your deductible to fix it. Take it to a body shop and get a quote. Then ask the culprit whether he wants to pay or he wants to use his insurance. After we got stiffed by a guy driving a work truck that turned out to have expired insurance, I will never leave the scene without pictures of the culprit, their driver's license, insurance card, and registration of the responsible party.

 

[user 1485]

Ugh sorry, that really sucks. Chilton is a really good local body/paint shop that I've used before. They have locations all over here on the Peninsula. Not sure if their pricing is good, but I can vouch for the excellent work that they do.

 

[johnnylingo]

Since I leased my car, I have to pay some recovery fee.

If it's single dent under 2" in length, they consider that normal wear. This being said, it's still in your best interest to get it repaired, as a second dent would be considered excessive and subject to charges.

 

[JoulesThief]

See if you can get a quote from a Paintless Dent Removal guy, and then if the paint left on there will rub out with polish and a buffer wheel. Hard to tell by the photo how bad it really is.

 

[BarryMW]

Couple of interesting points.

1. I had a small ding on my lease return hood. But because the paint was missing in the ding (no rust) I was dinged (pun intended) on my returning the vehicle.

2. Buddy had the side of his lease return keyed, obvious ding on lease return.

3. The amount of the lease return ding was a fraction of what a local paint shop wanted to fix the issues. Mine lease excess was only $200 and the local paint places wont put paint in the spray gun for under $1000.

So if you are anywhere near a lease return, get the end-of-lease inspection and compare the costs. Remember paying out the lease excess does not go against your insurance.

Barry