Tree branch fell on truck, worth insurance claim?

During a storm last night a large tree branch fell on the side of my truck. Snapped my mirror off and left dents along the pillar, including a small dent in the door. I've never made an insurance claim so not sure if this is something you all would consider for something like this? Any pros/cons with forgoing insurance other than the out of pocket costs? My truck was perfect before this and my OCD is going to notice these dents every time I walk up to it. Thanks for the help!

 

Depends on what your comprehensive deductible is.

 

When you do a claim, does it go against your carfax as an accident or come up if you sell the truck down the road?

 

I would assume so.

 

See if it can be fixed at a paintless dent repair shop. It's amazing what some of them are able to do.

 

Yep- have a PDR guy look at it. And order a new mirror- those are easy.

I have had PDR on my truck, and the result was flawless. And only cost about $200.

 

these are the toughest calls. I'd probably try the paintless repair and live with the outcome. fix mirror on my own dime most likely too. Maybe color match the mirrors if they weren't.

 

Also, most body shops don't fix those tiny dents...they call the same guy you would call for the PDR and then pass on the charge + the bodyshop charge to fix it. With buying a new mirror, even junkyard good grade one, probably $100-150, then PDR for probably 200-300 for those 3 dents you will still come out ahead of your $250 or $500 (I assume) deductible and not have a mark on the Carfax. You can always get a free estimate from your locally trusted bodyshop and see what they saw as well.

 

Don’t forget to sue the tree for diminished value.

 

Thanks for the input everyone. I'll scour a mirror assembly online and contact a painless dent repair place.

 

I would do an OEM mirror since aftermarkets suck and shake at speed. This also may be a good tim eto upgrade to towing mirrors if you need.

 

Was thinking used oem off parts finder.

 

Homeowners' insurance would cover that...

 

probably at least a $1000 deductible though

 

Probably...call some PDR folk and let them try first...

 

Tow mirror upgrade time

 

I think it’s up to the place that fixes it to report the damage. My previous truck had a small dent and the entire rear door repainted outside of insurance by a dealer and it wasn’t on the car fax when I sold the truck

 

Yep. PDR. No Carfax, no insurance rate increase and cheaper.

 

A good PDR guy should be able to get those dents out they don’t look too bad and probably for $150-$200. I’d find a mirror from a junk yard dealers (www.car-parts.com). Good luck!

 

Yeah I had a PDR guy take creases out of the side of a Ford Mustang a couple years ago. It was amazing. One hour and it looked like it had never been damaged.

 

PDR definitely, not worth it to file a claim and have it on the truck's record. When I had my Sti, it had a ding on a crease on the front fender so I took it to a PDR guy and he was able to make it look perfect again.

 

Talked to a reputable dent repair guy today and he said the pillar and door dent isn't something that can be popped due to it bending on the creases. He recommended doing a comprehensive claim and taking it to an auto body shop. He said of the paint where the pillar dent crease is cracked which would need to be fixed anyways. He recommended taking pictures and down the road when I sell it I could show that it was just a few dents in the hopes it doesn't decrease the value much. Still on the fence about this versus out of pocket, guess I'll have to see what the quote is from a shop.