Document it before anything else
The wash can wait. Photograph each scratch straight on and again at a low angle, plus one wide frame of the whole side so an adjuster can see how far the damage runs. Deep scratches photograph badly, so shoot in daylight or rake a flashlight across the panel.
Then report it. Vandalism claims essentially always require a police report, and in Toronto you can file one for property damage online in a few minutes. Ask nearby houses and businesses about cameras the same day — the useful footage is usually gone within a week, and a doorbell camera two houses down has solved more than one of these on our street alone.
- Photos of every affected panel, straight on and at an angle
- One wide shot showing the full run of the damage
- The police report number
- Where the car was parked and the time window involved
- Any camera with a view of the vehicle
How vandalism coverage works
Keying is a comprehensive loss. Comprehensive is the part of an Ontario policy that responds to what happens to your car outside of driving it into something — theft, fire, hail, falling branches, and deliberate damage — so no fault is assigned and your comprehensive deductible is the only cost on your side.
Because there is no at-fault finding, these claims generally avoid the pricing consequence an at-fault collision carries, though every insurance company weighs claim history its own way. If the person responsible is identified, your insurance company may pursue them and refund your deductible.
- Refinishing every panel the scratch actually crosses
- A blend into the panels alongside so the work disappears
- Your comprehensive deductible as the only out-of-pocket cost
- No at-fault finding, because no driver caused the damage
- A possible deductible refund if the person responsible is found
What repairing a keyed panel takes
Drag a fingernail across the scratch. If it catches, the cut has gone through the clear coat and no polish will bring it back — the panel needs refinishing. Keys typically go deeper still, straight through the colour into primer or bare metal.
The repair sands the area flat, primes and seals it, then sprays colour mixed to the panel’s measured shade and blends into the neighbouring panels. A keyed line that runs across a fender, a door, and a quarter means all three get worked, because a repair that stops at a panel gap is visible forever.
What to expect from us
Send the same photos you took for the police report and the owner writes a free estimate itemized panel by panel — exactly the document your adjuster will want to see with the claim.
Colour match is where this repair is won or lost, and it is the thing we obsess over most. Every refinish carries a lifetime paint warranty. Call (647) 594-3401 or bring the car by the shop off Keele just south of Sheppard.
