Cracked Windshield

[phamy76]

This morning we woke up to a nice coating of snow 2".
But, when cleaning off my car, I have a nice crack going from one side to the other.


Need advice.
Does insurance cover this?


How much will a new windshield cost?
Where to go?

 

[clh2]

You probably need to check with your insurance company. Windshields are covered on my insurance - I think I need to pay a $50 deductible. (Well actually if they glass company can fix it with one of the little plug things, it is free, but yours is bigger than that)

The insurance company handled all the details, and the glass company came to my job to fix it while I was at work.

 

[quentina]

This morning we woke up to a nice coating of snow 2".
But, when cleaning off my car, I have a nice crack going from one side to the other.


Need advice.
Does insurance cover this?


How much will a new windshield cost?
Where to go?

My insurance covered mine (I think comprehensive side). I also have no deductible so, it was free. Depending on the damage, they may try to fix it with a filler of some sort.

Call you insurance. The glass people come right into the driveway to fix it.

 

[Heidict]

Depends on your state and their requirments and the policy that you opted for with your auto insurance.

You may have to pay a deductible. If so, check around and see how much it is. Often times it's cheaper to go out of pocket then to pay the deductible.

 

[torinsmom]

If you have insurance that covers windshields, check and see if you have a GlassMasters anywhere in your area. They waive the deductible, at least in my area. The crack has to be a certain length to replace vs. fix the windshield.

Marsha

 

[jedijill]

I don't have windshield coverage (well I do but I have $500 deductible). I replaced the windshield OOP for $200. I used Safelite who is who my insurance recommended. They came to my house and did a great job.

You can go to Safelite's website and put in your car's info and it will give you the price to pay OOP.

Jill in CO

 

[lisabarr]

Be careful if you are paying yourself.
I shattered my back windshield (don't ask) and got a cheap internet price of $270 to replace. Well thankfully I had printed out the quote because when all was said and done they tried to charge me $500. Claimed the internet quote was for window only and didn't include labor.

When I spoke with the women on the phone I confirmed that the $270 price included eveything. Now she was booking jobs out of Miami, the guy came from Orlando and I live near Tampa.
I think alot of these web sites may not be local and are just booking the jobs then hiring them out. KWIM?
I finally agreed to pay $300 but then they told me that if paid with my CC there was an extra charge. So the guy followed me to the bank so I could pay him in cash.
Then he had the nerve to ask for a tip. and when I didn't give one he asked again. I was fuming by this point.

Next time I will be sure to go local!

 

[Juliee8]

Your windshield would be covered as long as your have "comprehensive" coverage on your policy. If your deductible is too high, it might be cheaper for you to pay for it yourself. If you choose to do that, make sure you go to a reputable glass shop. Often times your insurance company or agent can recommend a place for you.

 

[si-am]

For some reason my windshield wasn't covered, even though I have comprehensive insurance with USAA. Maybe it's some kind of exclusion that I could have added but didn't know about.

I ended up paying close to $400 for mine to be replaced.

 

[msmayor]

For some reason my windshield wasn't covered, even though I have comprehensive insurance with USAA. Maybe it's some kind of exclusion that I could have added but didn't know about.

I ended up paying close to $400 for mine to be replaced.

Did the windshield need actual replacing? If it only cost $400, then perhaps it wasn't 'covered' because of the deductible.

I've had cracks/chips in two different windshields, and as long as they are repairable USAA has covered the cost 100%. Repair guy actually came to the house to take care of it, and all I needed to do was sign a paper.

The key is getting the repair done ASAP. If any moisture is allowed to settle in the crack or chip, it can get worse as heat and cold expand and contract the glass. If the damage is too deep or the crack too long, the windshield MUST be replaced for safety reasons.

 

[puffkin]

We have comprehensive with glass coverage. Our normal deductible is $500 but for glass it is $100. We crack a lot of windshields due to a lot of highway driving....we average about 1 a year. My husbands currently has a crack but it is well below the sight line (can't believe it even passed inspection) so we haven't gotten around to replacing it yet.

 

[si-am]

Did the windshield need actual replacing? If it only cost $400, then perhaps it wasn't 'covered' because of the deductible.

I've had cracks/chips in two different windshields, and as long as they are repairable USAA has covered the cost 100%. Repair guy actually came to the house to take care of it, and all I needed to do was sign a paper.

The key is getting the repair done ASAP. If any moisture is allowed to settle in the crack or chip, it can get worse as heat and cold expand and contract the glass. If the damage is too deep or the crack too long, the windshield MUST be replaced for safety reasons.

Yeah, I had several people come look at it, and no one could fix it. It had to be replaced.

I think our deductible is $500 so it wouldn't have been necessary to file a claim, anyway!

 

[phamy76]

Well, I have good news and bad news.

Good news : my insurance covers it completely. No deductible, no out of pocket

bad news: I can't get it fixed until Monday at noon since it's a holiday weekend. they are calling for snow the next 3 days, so I'm going to put a tarp over it and keep it in the driveway until Monday.

 

[treeface]

Ours cracked on our way home from Disney last week (south of Atlanta), it was a deep crack and then had spread about 3" when I noticed it. By the time we got home (15 hours later), it was about 12" long. As it was Christmas Eve when we got home, we weren't able to have it replaced until this past Tuesday. It did grow a few more inches, but it didn't break.

Our insurance paid it in full which was good since we left most of our extra money with Mickey!

 

[A Mickeyfan]

I have the coverage on my policy but it isn't something that comes with it, you need to specify it. I will tell you, you can get a ticket for a cracked windshield. My son hit our mailbox one day, that very day he took the car over to the repair shop that had just done the wheel alignment (as well as $1300 worth of work) to find out why when he hit the bump the car pulled to the right & he hit the mailbox.. He wanted them to see the car. That was the reason for taking it in to begin with.. make a long story short, on his way home it started to drizzle & he could not put on his windshield wipers. A cop pulled him over and gave him 2 tkts.. one for a cracked windshield and one for not using his wipers in the rain. The officer didn't care that the accident just happened in that hour.. My son could could not fight it either.. it was written up as driving an unsafe viechle!... twice.... When they aren't specified, you really cannot fight it..there should have been a grace period for him to get it fixed and there wasn't..

 

[mrodgers]

....and one for not using his wipers in the rain.

They can cite you for not using your wipers? What if you love RainX like I do? I never use my wipers. The rain just flies right off my windshield.

I've had 2 cracked windshields replaced and 1 chipped fixed in the last few years. Wife and I had separate insurance companies and my truck had an unrepairable crack. The insurance would cover it with a $200 deductible. If I used their recommended company, they would give me a $50 coupon. Imagine the surprise when that company charged $250 to replace the glass. I called Safelite and paid it myself, $200 without the insurance claim.

My wife's car then had a crack. Her insurance company paid 100%. Following that, I sold my truck and bought her a new car, thus inheriting her old car. This time we kept her insurance for the new one and it got a chip. Again covered 100%. I used Safelite for all 3 listed.

 

[pixiewings71]

We use Rain X too, it rains a lot here....but we still have to use wipers, Rain X or not, it's still illegal to drive without working wipers. But yes Mickeyfan, why didn't he use his wipers? My DBF's car has had a HUGE crack for over a year now, he uses his wipers all the time.

Safelite is repairing my mini van window as we speak, someone decided that our van looked good enough to try to break into last night and broke the sliding passenger side window, not out, they didn't get IN the van, they just broke the window......the officer who took our report said it looked like a window breaking tool, the repair guy just now said it looked like a BB gun shot, all I know is I was coooold driving down the freeway at 70 mph with NO window back there! LOL Thanks goodness it's not raining....and no, our ins. isn't covering it at all, our deductible is $500, window replacement is $300.

 

[woodkins]

For some reason my windshield wasn't covered, even though I have comprehensive insurance with USAA. Maybe it's some kind of exclusion that I could have added but didn't know about.

I ended up paying close to $400 for mine to be replaced.

I also have USAA and the glass coverage is an option to your insurance policy it costs us approx $5 extra every 6 mos. Any crack, break etc is fully covered as long as you use one of their providers (Safelite is one). We went through 4 new windshiels in 3 mos at one point and all were 100% covered (and they were pricey Audi windshields with the car antenna built into the windshield).

 

[mamalle]

ours is covered 100% through state farm. we had to use it twice this year. Once at the baseball field for the front windshield of dh car after it was cracked by a baseball and than again in July when the whole backshield shattered. we are not sure if it was the extreme heat or some kids tried to break in as we were at the beach at the time.. good luck!

 

[A Mickeyfan]

We use Rain X too, it rains a lot here....but we still have to use wipers, Rain X or not, it's still illegal to drive without working wipers. But yes Mickeyfan, why didn't he use his wipers? My DBF's car has had a HUGE crack for over a year now, he uses his wipers all the time.

Safelite is repairing my mini van window as we speak, someone decided that our van looked good enough to try to break into last night and broke the sliding passenger side window, not out, they didn't get IN the van, they just broke the window......the officer who took our report said it looked like a window breaking tool, the repair guy just now said it looked like a BB gun shot, all I know is I was coooold driving down the freeway at 70 mph with NO window back there! LOL Thanks goodness it's not raining....and no, our ins. isn't covering it at all, our deductible is $500, window replacement is $300.

The windshield was totally cracked on the passenger side and the wipers would not work properly.. he was just in an accident. It wasn't like it was a small crack, it was a shatter crack! he was able to drive it the short distance to the repair shop.. but coming home is when the rains started and the police pulled him over. His crack wasn't a crack that he could have driven the car for more than that day.. it needed to be repaired ASAP... a bit different for your DBF's....remember, my son's car hit our mailbox.. the mailbox nearly went thru the windshield..