Hail-damaged cars swamp auto body shops

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Insurance adjusters are inspecting more than homes following recent storms, they're examining damaged cars too. As for the people who repair hail damage, they expect to be busy for a long time.

Sean Schledt's company, ElimiDents , is taking on the hail-damaged cars. He said he's seen damage ranging from $200 to damage that amounts to a total loss.

"A lot of the stuff is not fixable because there's just so many dents on the panel and it's just more cost-effective to just put a new panel on," said Schledt.

The shop is already busy because of Tuesday's storm and Sean expects it to get worse.

"Believe it or not, we will fix cars for a year," said Schledt.

So, he's adding technicians from out of town on day shifts and night shifts to meet the demand.

"The highest volume is gonna be in the first three months and then after that it's just gonna be straggler cars and people just getting their cars fixed when they have time," Schledt said.

The repairs can take a lot of time because they have to ease the metal back to its original shape.

"This could be possibly a six to eight-hour hood," a technician said of one job.

Schledt said if your car suffered damage, the law allows you to go wherever you want for repairs. But he advises customers to call their insurance companies first, since companies have different guidelines.

"At least call them. They need to at least make the claim and then that insurance company is basically gonna tell them the process," said Schledt.