As soon as your vehicle windshield receives any amount of damage, you will need to determine the extent of the damage and complete the necessary repairs to keep your vehicle safe to drive. Here is some insight to help you deal with this situation and get your vehicle back on the road.
Repair or Replace
After damage to your windshield occurs, you will need to decide if you need to repair or replace the windshield. Many types of windshield damage comprises a rock chip or small crack in your windshield, and can be filled with an epoxy filler before the crack begins to spread into the rest of the windshield. A windshield chip repair is much less expensive than a full windshield repair and can be completed in just a few minutes.
Take your vehicle to a local glass repair shop or a window chip repair business and ask them to fill the window chip. If you find out the damage is too large for the epoxy to repair it, or the windshield has shattered a large area of the glass, you will need to replace the windshield.
Determine Your Insurance Coverage
After you have determined your windshield will need to be replaced, call your auto insurance agent to find out what your auto insurance covers for windshield repairs. Depending on your auto insurance deductible and your coverage agreement, your insurance may not cover the replacement of a new windshield and you will have to pay for it out of your own pocket. For example, if your deductible is $500, you will need to pay the first $500 of the windshield replacement until your insurance will cover the rest. Likely, a new windshield is less than $500, so you will pay it all.
However, if your insurance has a full glass coverage, or your policy includes a windshield glass repair agreement, or the state you live in does not allow your insurance to make you pay for a deductible to replace your windshield, you won't have to cover the cost yourself. You may also choose to add full glass coverage to your insurance to cover the replacement if or when it occurs again.
Clean Up Any Glass Shards
If your windshield has shattered from the damage, this can leave small pieces of sharp glass inside your vehicle and put you at risk of cutting your skin. For this reason, it is recommended to use a vacuum to clean up all the glass after the new windshield has been installed. Do not pick up any pieces of glass by hand, unless you are wearing thick protective gloves. Some windshield replacement businesses will vacuum out your vehicle as part of their service.