The bumper on your vehicle is there for a reason. It is capable of withstanding knocks and scrapes while protecting the body of your car. However, sometimes the damage to a bumper is actually worse than you might think, and the only option is to replace it.

But first, when not to replace

The general rule of thumb here is that if the bumper has been scuffed or scratched, there is usually a very easy solution that you can call on. There are plenty of specialists around who can fix such superficial damages, and the work required usually only takes a very short time. With that in mind, if you have a scuff or scratch, don’t panic, and just call in on a specialist, if you want to have it fixed.

This is true for little chips and grazes too. It’s all about what is known as the ‘integrity’ of the bumper. Most of the time, anything small like this doesn’t actually damage the bumper to the extent to which it needs replacing. It is all purely cosmetic.

Bumpers are designed to take a knock. The plastic in a bumper is made to receive a ‘bump’ and react by stretching a little. So, a simple scratch, unless you are determined to keep the vehicle untarnished, is no reason to have a bumper replacement.

When should you consider a bumper replacement?

Things get difficult with bumpers sometimes, and the only option is to replace the bumper. This is where the bumper itself has a significant crack or split in it due to a collision. As it happens, this is where the right choices are important.

You can have that split or crack repaired. There are many vendors who can do this for you, and it can usually be the case that such damage can be repaired quite easily. What a specialist will most likely do is use some filler that can be flexible. This will allow the crack or split to be repaired, whilst also allowing for some flexibility going forward. If another accident happens, there is a good chance that the filler will be strong and flexible enough to take the damage.

This can be a little pricey, which is where the decision-making comes into play. If that bumper is damaged significantly once again, you may well need to pay for some more specialist filler work. If you decide to do this, there is a strong chance you have overspent, because a new bumper is usually considerably less in cost than specialist filler work, especially repeated filler work.

Therefore, if you have a crack or a split, consider having a bumper replaced. The replacement is usually quite reasonable in price and you can easily find replacement Ford bumpers, for example, online.

Losing a bumper is usually not the end of the world regarding price, and a replacement bumper is not a big deal when you take into account all the costs the car will generate over time. Bumpers are meant to be bumped, and unless there is a serious bit of damage, you may find that you don’t need to have any work done at all.