Blog · Hail
My car has hail damage: what to do and what insurance covers
A heavy hailstorm can leave a car with dozens or hundreds of dents in minutes. What you do in the hours that follow affects the price and the time of the repair. This is what we recommend.
What should you do in the first 24 hours after a hailstorm?
Take photos in daylight, check your policy, report the claim to your insurer and get a paintless repair assessment before accepting any quote involving paint.
- Check there is no broken glass or lights; if there is, protect the interior from rain.
- Take photos in daylight: the whole car and each panel at an angle.
- Look in your policy for own damage or weather event cover.
- Report the claim to your insurer, giving the date and time of the storm.
- Get a PDR assessment before agreeing to replace any panel.
What does car insurance cover for hail in Spain?
Hail is normally covered by fully comprehensive policies and extended third-party policies that include weather events; the Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros does not cover it.
This is the most common confusion. The Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros handles extraordinary risks such as floods or atypical cyclonic storms, but hail is not on that list. So cover depends only on your contract.
The deadline for reporting a loss is in article 16 of Spain's Insurance Contract Act (Law 50/1980): seven days as a general rule. If your policy has an excess, you pay it and the insurer pays the rest. We explain how we coordinate everything in hail insurance claims and assessment.
Paintless hail repair vs. paint and panel replacement: what changes?
Quick answer: if the paint is not broken, paintless hail repair is faster and keeps the original structure and paint; replacing and painting is only justified for very large dents.
| Criterion | Paintless | Paint and replacement |
|---|---|---|
| Time | 1 to 5 days | 1 to 3 weeks |
| Roof | Original | Cut out and replaced |
| Paint | Factory | New on several panels |
| Resale value | Maintained | May drop due to structural repair |
How long does it take to repair a hail-damaged car?
Between 1 and 5 working days: a car with 30 or 40 dents is usually done in a day and one with more than 150 in four or five.
First we make a panel-by-panel dent map, which the loss adjuster uses to assess and we use to quote. Then we lower the roof lining and repair each dent with rods from inside, pulling where there is no access. Replacing the roof is only considered for very large dents, broken paint or badly stretched metal. The full process is in hail damage repair.
How can you protect your car from the next hailstorm?
Check AEMET warnings when storms are forecast and, if hail is likely, park in a garage or use a padded cover.
In North Madrid hailstorms are most frequent in spring and late summer. AEMET warnings show the risk level by area in advance. A covered shopping-centre car park can be a good option if you have no garage. And if the hail comes anyway, you now know where to start.
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions on this topic
How long do I have to report a hail claim in Spain?
Spain's Insurance Contract Act sets a general deadline of seven days from when you become aware of the loss, unless your policy allows longer.
Does hail increase my insurance premium?
It depends on the insurer. Some do not count it against your no-claims bonus because it is a weather event; others do. Ask when you open the claim.
Can I wash the car before it is repaired?
Better to wait until you have photos and an assessment. After that you can wash it normally; hail does not harm the paint unless it has broken it.
Do hail covers work?
Padded covers greatly reduce dents from small and medium hail. Against very large hail, only a garage really protects the car.
Free quote from a photo
Can you send us a photo of the dent?
We reply with a fixed quote within two working hours, with no obligation.
Take 2 or 3 photos in daylight: one from a distance showing the whole panel and one at an angle where you can see the reflection bend. That is enough for us to tell you whether it can be repaired without paint, how long it takes and what it costs.
- C. Valgrande, 10, Nave 1, 28108 Alcobendas (Madrid)
- +34 673 50 67 93
- info@varillerocoche.es
- Monday to Friday: 9:00–14:00 and 15:00–18:00
Tell us what happened to your car
We reply with your quote by phone or WhatsApp. You can attach up to 3 photos of the dent here or, if you prefer, send everything via WhatsApp.
Last updated: . Written and reviewed by David, PDR technician and founder of Varillero Coche.