Open Sesame Garages · Oklahoma City
I backed into my garage door with the car. What do I do now?
Stop and do not press the opener button again. Pull the car clear only if it is not pinning the door, keep everyone out from under the door, and look from a distance for a door off its track, a slack cable, or a bent panel. Photograph the door, the track and the car before anything is moved, because impact damage is often covered by insurance. If the door will not close or is hanging crooked, call for emergency service; if it still closes and sits level, it can usually wait for a scheduled repair.
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The first five minutes
- Do not cycle the door to see if it still works. An impacted door is often partly off track, and running the opener can pull it the rest of the way out.
- Unplug the opener so nobody else in the house tries the button.
- If the car is resting against the door, back it out slowly and only if the door is not moving with it.
- Photograph the whole door from the driveway, each track, the bottom corners where the cables attach, and the damage to the car.
- If the door is stuck open overnight and the springs look intact, secure the garage and call rather than forcing the door down.
What usually gets damaged
- Rollers pushed out of the track, often only on one side, which leaves the door racked and crooked.
- Bent vertical track sections, which cannot be safely straightened in place if the bend is sharp.
- Creased or cracked bottom panels, and bent struts on the inside face of the door.
- Lift cables thrown off their drums when the door shifts, and bottom brackets bent at the corners.
- The opener rail or bracket pulled loose from the header if the opener was running at the moment of impact.
Repair or replace the door
Most impacts need a track reseat, a few rollers, and sometimes a track section or cables. A creased bottom panel can often be replaced on its own if the panel is still made for your door. When several panels are creased or the door is an older model with no matching panels, replacing the whole door can cost less than rebuilding it, and a technician should show you both numbers.
In the OKC metro, a clean off-track reseat typically runs $150 to $350, with cables usually adding $150 to $250, a bent track section $150 to $400, and a creased panel roughly $250 to $800 or more per section.
Related questions
Does homeowners insurance cover a garage door hit by a car?
Sudden accidental damage such as a vehicle strike is often covered, either by homeowners insurance or by the auto policy of the driver. Photograph the damage before the repair and ask your carrier. Open Sesame Garages provides itemized invoices that describe the cause, which is what adjusters ask for.
Is it an emergency if the car hit the door?
It is if the door will not close, is hanging crooked or off its track, a cable is slack, or a car you need is trapped inside. If the door still closes smoothly and sits level, book a scheduled inspection instead and avoid the after-hours fee.
Can I push the door back into the track myself?
Not after an impact. The load has shifted onto the cables, which are under full spring tension, and a door that is racked can drop when a roller is forced back in. One top roller popped out on an otherwise undamaged, closed door is the only case worth considering, and even then call if anything else looks bent.
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Open Sesame Garages serves Oklahoma City and the surrounding metro with same-day estimates and 24/7 emergency repair.