Every experienced hail estimator uses the same core tool: a pricing matrix. You find the panel, count the dents, pick the predominant size, and the matrix hands you a number. Then the adders stack on top: aluminum, double metal, big roofs, oversized dents. That is the whole system. The margin lives in the details, and the details are where most estimates leak money.
I have priced vehicles on dealer lots and storm sites for over six years. This guide covers how the matrix actually works, the standard numbers used across the industry, and the mistakes I see estimators make when the line is forty cars deep.
What is a PDR pricing matrix?
A PDR pricing matrix is a grid that converts damage into a price, panel by panel. Down the left side: the vehicle's outer panels (hood, roof, left fender, right quarter, and so on). Across the top: dent-count ranges grouped into bands. Inside each band: a price for each dent size, expressed in coins: dime, nickel, quarter, half dollar.
This is not a Steelie invention or anyone else's. It is how the industry estimates hail. Insurance estimating platforms build it in: CCC ONE, the platform most carriers and body shops run claims through, lets a shop or carrier profile define a PDR matrix with values assigned per dent-count range and per dent size, in hours or dollars (CCC's PDR setup documentation). Carriers maintain their own matrices with their own terms. State Farm publishes one for its Select Service shops, for example, and independent-adjuster training programs teach the same structure (IA Path's hail estimating guide).
The key mental shift for new estimators: you price the panel, not the dent. Nobody is measuring 137 individual dents on a roof. You count them, band them, and size them once.
How do you read a matrix?
Three steps, in order, per panel:
- Find the panel in the left column.
- Count the dents on that panel and find the matching count band.
- Determine the predominant size: the coin size that the majority of dents on that panel fall into. Not the biggest dent. The majority size.
Cross-reference the three and the cell is your panel price. Repeat for every damaged panel, then apply adders.
Here is what a slice of a typical matrix looks like. These cells are illustrative retail-style numbers, not any carrier's sheet; the structure is the point:
| Panel | Dents | Dime | Nickel | Quarter | Half dollar |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hood | 1 to 5 | $150 | $175 | $210 | $260 |
| Hood | 6 to 15 | $260 | $300 | $360 | $440 |
| Hood | 16 to 30 | $420 | $480 | $575 | $700 |
| Roof | 6 to 15 | $300 | $345 | $415 | $505 |
| Roof | 16 to 30 | $480 | $550 | $660 | $805 |
Worked example: a hood with 22 dents, most of them nickel-sized, prices at $480 from this table. A roof with 12 mostly quarter-sized dents prices at $415. Two panels, two cells, done in under a minute. That speed is why the matrix exists: an estimator with a tuned matrix can price a 40-vehicle dealer lot in a weekend without the quality of the numbers depending on how tired they are.
Two rules that prevent arguments later:
- Mixed sizes on one panel resolve to the majority. Fifteen dimes and five quarters on a hood is a dime panel. This is the standard convention on carrier matrices, and it cuts both ways, so count honestly.
- Bands are per panel, never per vehicle. A car with 8 dents on each of six panels is six small-band panels, not one 48-dent vehicle.
What are the standard adders?
The matrix price assumes a steel panel with normal access. Reality applies surcharges, and the industry has settled on remarkably consistent numbers (IA Path teaches the same set):
| Adder | Typical amount | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Aluminum panel | +25% | Aluminum is stiffer, has memory, and takes longer to move cleanly |
| High-strength steel | +25% | Same problem, different metal |
| Double metal (roof rails, some edges) | +25% | No rear access; glue pulling instead of pushing |
| SUV / van / truck roof | +25% | More surface, more bracing, more time on the ladder |
| Oversized dent (bigger than half dollar) | +$40 to $50 flat, per dent | Outside the matrix entirely; counted and charged separately |
| Corrosion protection | ~$10 per panel, capped ~$30 per vehicle | Appears on some carrier matrices after repairs that disturb coatings |
Order of operations matters: percentage adders apply to the matrix price first, then flat oversized charges are added on top. A quarter-band aluminum hood at $575 becomes $718.75 with the 25% adder; three oversized hits at $50 bring the panel to $868.75. Write the oversized dents as their own line so the adjuster can see the count.
One warning from the field: adders stack, but you have to be able to defend each one. An aluminum SUV roof with double-metal rails legitimately carries multiple 25% adders. Photograph the panel, note the metal, and keep the math visible on the estimate.
What does retail dent repair actually cost?
Retail and insurance are different markets, and mixing up their numbers is how techs underprice walk-in work. Current published retail ranges from shop pricing guides run roughly (Dent Evo, April 2026, National Dent Repair's price guide):
| Retail job | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Single door ding | $195 to $295 |
| Two to five dings, one panel | $195 to $350 |
| Golf-ball dent | $250 to $450 |
| Large multi-panel damage | $500 to $900 |
| Light hail, whole vehicle | $500 to $1,200 |
| Heavy hail, whole vehicle | $1,200 to $4,000+ |
Shops layer retail upcharges much like insurer adders: common examples are around 25% for a dent sitting on a body line, 25% for aluminum, and more for deep or stretched metal. A retail matrix preset with those bands built in means your counter quote and your written estimate never disagree.
Where do R&I and supplements fit?
Two line types ride alongside the matrix on real hail claims:
R&I (remove and install) covers parts that come off to gain access: a headliner dropped for roof dents, taillights out for quarter access, moldings and trim. R&I is billed as its own labor lines, not buried in the matrix cell. Industry procedure language supports charging it whenever a qualified technician deems removal necessary to see or reach the repair (NAPDRT's procedure guidance). Keeping a standing R&I price guide per part, with your rates, is what keeps these lines consistent across every estimate you write.
Supplements exist because adjusters scope in parking lots and dents hide. Under PDR lighting in a shop, panels routinely show damage the tent inspection missed. The process is standard: document the additional damage with photos, submit a revised estimate, and expect a few days to a week or more of back-and-forth before approval. Build that lag into your storm-season cash-flow expectations, and never start the extra work before the supplement clears.
Which mistakes actually cost money?
After watching a lot of estimates get written, argued, and paid, these are the recurring leaks:
- Calling predominant size by the biggest dent. That is not the rule, and adjusters know it. It gets estimates kicked back and burns credibility you need for the supplement conversation.
- Forgetting the metal. An unfilled aluminum checkbox on a modern truck hood silently donates 25% of the panel.
- Blending oversized dents into the count. Five half-dollar-plus hits averaged into "quarter-ish" pricing can underprice a panel by $200 or more.
- One matrix for everything. Your State Farm preset, your dealer-program preset, and your retail preset should not share numbers. Carriers differ, dealers negotiate volume, retail carries your overhead.
- Pricing from memory during a storm. Fatigue math always rounds down. The matrix exists so the fortieth car of the day is priced like the first.
How Steelie runs this exact workflow
Steelie was built around the matrix workflow this article describes, by people who price hail for a living:
- The matrix is fully yours. 14 panels, 8 dent-count bands, three size columns, every cell editable. Build unlimited named presets: one per insurance carrier, one per dealer program, one per storm, one for retail. Switch presets in one tap when the estimate starts. USD and CAD pricing stored independently.
- The adders are automated. Roof surcharge for SUVs and trucks, aluminum multiplier per panel, flat oversized-dent pricing, and corrosion protection with a per-vehicle cap are settings, not mental math. The hail wizard applies them at review and shows the breakdown.
- Counting is tap-to-count. Big touch targets per panel, one tap per dent, separate oversized counter, size selection per panel, undo. One hand on the car, one on the phone.
- The paper trail is built in. Estimates export as branded PDFs, including a landscape matrix PDF with the cells used on this vehicle highlighted, which is exactly the artifact you want attached when a supplement conversation starts.
If your current process is a laminated matrix and a calculator, the 7-day trial exists to test whether the fortieth car of a storm weekend deserves better. Pricing is published; no card required to try it.