Keyed Car Repair: What to Do When Your Car Gets Vandalised

Walking out to a key line down the side of your car is a gut punch — I see the photos land in my phone most weeks. It's almost always somewhere obvious: a door, a guard, right along the body line. Take a breath. It's fixable, and you've got a bit of time. Here's exactly what I'd do, in order.

First few minutes

• Don't go knocking on doors or chasing anyone — it's not worth it
• Photograph the damage properly before you touch it
• Have a look around for cameras or anyone who might've seen it
• Lodge a police report online
• Don't try to rub it out or clean it yourself — you can make it worse
• Get it quoted before you ring the insurer

Photograph it like you mean it

Those photos do triple duty — police report, insurance, and your repair quote. Get:

• Close-ups of the key line from a few angles
• A wider shot showing the whole panel and where the car's parked
• The surroundings — nearby buildings, other cars, anything with a camera
• Any CCTV you can see, even if it looks like it's pointed elsewhere
• A note of the date, time and exactly where it happened

Lodge the police report

Do it through the Victoria Police online portal. Realistically they won't catch who did it, but you need that report number for any insurance claim, and it matters if it happens again — repeat targeting is a different conversation.

Chase the footage early

If it happened at a shopping centre or out the front of a business, ring them and ask about CCTV. Neighbours' cameras and dashcams catch a lot too. Most footage gets wiped inside a week or two, so don't sit on it.

The insurance maths

A typical keyed repair runs me about $400 to $600. Most excesses are $600 to $800. So for a single key line down one or two panels, a claim usually costs you more than just paying me — and you keep your no-claim bonus and your premium where it is. Only comprehensive policies cover vandalism anyway; third-party won't touch it. Quote first, then decide.

How I fix a keyed panel

A key goes deep — almost always through the clear and colour, often right to bare metal. That means it's a proper repair, not a buff. Here's the process:

• Clean and prep the whole damaged area
• Sand the key line back so the surface is flat and sound
• Prime any bare metal so it can't rust later
• Mix and tint the colour to match your panel, then lay it down
• Clear coat over it for gloss and protection
• Cut and polish to blend it back into the original paint

One panel is usually around two hours. A key line crossing two or three panels — front door, rear door, quarter — can be four or five. Send me photos in the morning and there's a good chance I'm there the same day.

What it'll cost, roughly

Price tracks three things: how long the line is, how deep it's gone (most are to bare metal, so primer's involved), and your colour — a flat white matches faster than a pearl. A key line across multiple panels around the Craigieburn area generally lands between $400 and $800.

Stopping it happening again

You can't keyproof a car, but you can shorten the odds:

• Park where it's well lit and there's people about
• Use secure parking when you can
• Leave a bit of room between you and the next car
• Run a dashcam with parking mode
• If you're being targeted repeatedly, change where you park and let the police know

Get a keyed car sorted

I repair keyed and vandalised cars at your place — driveway or garage — across Craigieburn, Broadmeadows, Epping, Lalor and Melbourne's north. Most jobs are same-day and around $400 to $600. Send photos or call me on 0493 932 068 for a free quote.