Defender mud flap ripped the body panel

[Defended.]

I have this small auto repairs shop and a customer came in with a 1995 Defender 90 that lost the rear mud flap... along with a good chunk of the lower body where it used to mount. Wow. I did a small bracket for a previous job years ago and might reuse the design, but I'm debating if I should rivet straight into the lip again or try a cleaner inside mount with rivnuts. What's the better route?

 

[crump_king]

Yikes...when the mud flap takes bodywork with it, that's never a good sign lol, check if the lip is still good and you're not dealing with rot or thin metal, if that's okay, riveting straight into it is quick and good especially for a working truck but if you want something cleaner and more serviceable, rivnuts on the inner side are a nice upgrade less chance of tearing out again

 

[yam-jam56]

If the lip's still solid, rivets are quick. But rivnuts give you a cleaner finish and make future swaps easier. Is the crossmember still intact, or are you patching that too?