how much to fix a bumper

Cost of Bumper Repair: How Much to Fix & Paint?

Posted on: February 25, 2019 • Author: Logan Derrick

Bumper Repair

Have you recently been in a fender bender accident, leaving your car with an ugly dent or scratch on the bumper? First of all, we hope you and everyone else involved is okay. Any type of car accident, no matter how big or small, can be a scary experience.

Once you've recovered, it's time to assess the damage and determine the bumper repair cost.

Back in the day, bumpers used to be little more than a single piece of wood or metal bolted to the front and back of your car. But as time has passed, modern vehicle designs have become a bit more complicated than that. Bumpers are now a major component of the automobile body, with a range of key features and functions attached to them.

This brief guide will give you an idea of what it costs to fix a bumper and get it painted.

Initial Labor Process

Car Mechanic Work - Bumper / Fender Parts & Labor Costs

As we said before, mechanics used to be able to remove a bumper by simply unscrewing a couple of bolts and pulling it off the car. But now, they are connected to wires, hold multiple sensors, and are usually covered by fragile fiberglass trim.

Here are just a few things that have to be handled as part of the labor process when repairing a bumper:

The trim has to be detached from the body and any other electrical components.
Both headlights and fog lights can potentially be connected to the bumper, so they must be unplugged or removed before the repair is done.
Sensors and visual systems such as backup cameras, lane-change monitors, and more are becoming much more common on modern vehicles. Repair technicians must take extra care not to damage or set off other sensors like the airbags as well.

The process of removing these parts alone can take between two to four hours at our labor rate of $58 per hour. The industry average hourly rate is around $70-$90, so you know we are dedicated to save you money and time at Todd's Auto Body.

Each of our technicians is highly trained to do the job quickly, but with the precision and care necessary to ensure it's done correctly.

Pieces & Parts

While we do all we can to use the original parts from your vehicle, on occasion some items will be too damaged to repair and will need to be entirely replaced.

If your auto collision was serious enough, a new bumper can cost anywhere from $400 to $800. This doesn't include any other sensors or wiring that is no longer functional.

It's not altogether uncommon for the parts alone to go over $1,000 when it comes to bumper repair cost.

The Paint Job

After the bumper repair portion is completed, it's time for new paint. The painting time depends greatly on the amount of damage to the trim, fenders, and other exterior pieces. To ensure it looks just as it did before the accident, we use a variety of parts and other materials including:

Body Fillers
Spot putty
Plastic spreader
Primer
Paint

Typically taking at least three to five hours during this process, painting labor generally costs about $90 per hour, along with about $40 per hour to cover the materials necessary for the job.

Thankfully at Todd's Auto Body, we can provide the same service at $58 per hour for labor. With proper auto paint maintenance and care, your car will look and feel like new for years to come.

Should You File an Insurance Claim?

This is always a difficult question to answer when trying to provide a response to the general population. The best answer we can offer is that it depends on your financial situation and insurance coverage.

You'll want to contact your insurance company to confirm your deductible and compare that with the cost of repairing your bumper. If the deductible is considerably well below the repair estimate, it may be worth it to file a claim and save the money upfront.

But keep in mind, any insurance claim (whether you are at fault or not) has the potential to raise your premium between 10%-40% at the next renewal.

Need to Get a Bumper Repaired?

Though it is difficult to evaluate any type of auto body repair without seeing the damage, we do our best to offer you a fair and reasonable online estimate.

Our professional certified technicians are knowledgeable and have a wide range of experience with bumper repair, auto body painting, collision repair, and much more. They will go over the process with you and ask the necessary questions to ensure we can provide an accurate idea of what you can expect.

From the smallest of cars to the largest semi-trucks & commercial vehicles, we are here for you. If your vehicle has any type of body damage, please complete our estimate form. We will contact you to discuss the details and offer you a free estimate.

Article Author:

Logan Derrick

After being told once that his content writing was like magic, Logan took on the title of Wordcraft Wizard. He is a professional content marketing strategist with a deep knowledge of SEO, digital marketing, web design, and more. He is dedicated to providing powerful, relevant, and engaging content without all the "fluff".