Protect your car from hail damage

6 Precautions to take to prevent hail damage

There are extra precautions people should take if they live in an area prone to hailstorms.

You can keep yourself and your vehicle safe by following these six tips:

1. Make proactive decisions:

When the hailstorm seasons draw nearer, it's best to take steps to protect yourself and keep your vehicle safe. These include watching the weather news or keeping an eye on the weather apps for any upcoming hailstorms. You can also store a vehicle tarp cover in the boot of your car and cover it over your vehicle at the first sign of hail if you're unable to find undercover parking.

2. Have full coverage:

Due to strong winds that can direct hail stones from all sides to your vehicle, ensure that your garage or vehicle's tarp can protect your car from all angles. If you have a covered area for your vehicle, a cloth with links connecting to the ground provides a cost-effective way to protect your vehicle.

3. Keep all trees trimmed:

Ensure that you trim your trees in the garden to avoid damage. This is because branches from trees can snap off during severe hailstorms.

4. Drive safely:

If you’re driving during a hailstorm, you should drive carefully. Whenever possible, park away on the far side of the road, away from traffic flow, because a moving vehicle can cause more damage than a still-standing car.

5. Safe Parking:

During a hailstorm, strong winds can blow away delicate structures, so try to park under strong ones. If, for any reason, you have to park your vehicle under a tarp cloth, ensure that it doesn't have any tears on the material to avoid hailstones getting through and damaging your car.

5. Insurance cover:

Make sure your vehicle is insured against hail damage, for if there's a possibility that you do get caught in a hailstorm. It can be costly for you to repair hail damage without insurance.

Now that you know about the few precautions you can take to prevent hail damage let's take a look at the five things to keep in mind when caught in an unexpected hailstorm.

5 Things to remember

Here we have listed ten steps on car insurance you can take after being involved in an accident:

1: If possible, stop driving. It can cause even more damage to your vehicle by impacting it at a higher speed, whereas hailstones already fall at fast speeds. Try to drive at least 50km/h when driving to a safer spot.

2: Get your vehicle to a safer place like a petrol station or any area with undercover parking to avoid hailstones from shattering your windows or denting your car.

3: The windscreens are made to withstand strong forces from the front, providing additional protection to the driver. So, if you can't find a shelter to cover your car or don’t have a tarp cloth, you can turn your car around for the hail to hit from the front instead of the back.

4: Before you continue driving, wait for the hailstorm to clear completely, thus ensuring your safety and preventing damage to your vehicle.

5: If it turns out that your vehicle is damaged or not driveable, you should call your insurance company or arrange a towing service and report the damage. Your insurer can provide you with information about the repair process. Also, keep in mind that comprehensive insurance provides coverage for hail damages.

Above all, even knowing the precautions of preventing damage from hailstorms and what to do when caught in an unexpected storm - we as people still make mistakes when dealing with damages from hail.

5 Common mistakes people make

Mistake 1: It’s common for people not to worry about hail damage when it is only light. Although, people fail to see that it can still be devastating to the value of your vehicle. Eventually, you would decide to either sell or trade your vehicle, which can be thousands of rands of value you will lose due to the damages that need repairs from hail damage.

Mistake 2: The fear of adding extra damage to your vehicle when it hails again may make most people wait until after the hail season passes before having it repaired. This is a big mistake. It can become insurance fraud when trying to take care of the damages from two separate hailstorms on a single claim.

On the other hand, being hit by an additional hailstorm can cause even more severe damage to your vehicle; thus said, from your vehicle being repairable, it can go to being unrepairable. Another thing to remember is that every time you're driving your car, "unrepaired" states pre-existing damage, and waiting for your vehicle to be repaired could lead to a potential disaster.

Mistake 3: If you find damage to your vehicle due to hail, you should first call your insurance company and file a claim. Most people make the mistake of following the instructions given by an insurance advisor only. When hailstorms have damaged several vehicles in an area, insurance companies often get overwhelmed with their claims.

There’s a chance that you'll wait for weeks or months for an assessor to be sent to inspect your vehicle and create an estimated settlement offer, and with the waiting process, you can experience a potential loss of thousands.

Many people find it favourable to accept a certain payment as a reduction on the amount they owe for repairs. Still, the issue is that if the damages cost you more than what was paid, you end up losing money.

Mistake 4: Many people believe their insurance premiums will rise if they file a claim for hail damage. The situation is fairly common, but they don't understand how much the repairs will cost and don't want to pay extra monthly. However, some insurance companies won’t pay based on where the car was parked.

For example: if you told your car insurance your car was parked under a roof, yet you parked your car outside, then it’s your fault, and you may end up paying for the repairs.

Mistake 5: There is a misconception that all paintless dent repair and autobody shops are the same, and it doesn't matter where you choose to go. But, compared to custom repairs, PDR is generally more affordable than repairing your car at a body shop.

Kiwis Auto Body offers panel beating as part of their services. Including restoring your vehicle to its original state by removing dents, shaping the vehicle's panels, smoothing, and spray painting any damaged areas. Additionally, Kiwis also offers services of paintless dent removal, where minor dents get repaired seamlessly, as long as the paint is still intact.

It is important to prevent damage from hail for the safety of your vehicle and yourself. You should contact a panel beater of your choice as soon as possible so they can advise you on the repair process and assist you with filing an insurance claim.

Firstly, you leave your vehicle with the shop, or you can arrange to tow service to have it brought in for evaluation, followed by a quotation on the repair work. Using the equipment, the staff will begin repairing your vehicle.