Auto Glass Coverage
You’re driving down the street behind a dump truck one day when suddenly the truck hits a bump and a small rock from the truck hits your windshield and chips it. You don’t think anything of it, the windshield is still fine and you go about your day. A few weeks go by and it’s a cold winter morning. You’re on your way to work and go over a set of railroad tracks. Next thing you know your windshield has a significant crack in it. Now you have no choice but to get the windshield replaced. What could you have done to avoid this?
Fixing Windshield
If you’ve been in the situation above, hopefully, you’ve learned that it is best to get any chips in your windshield repaired before they spread into a crack. The rule of thumb of many glass companies is if the chip is smaller than the size of a dollar bill, they can repair the windshield instead of having to replace it. As you can guess, repairing a windshield is dramatically less expensive than replacing it. This is especially important to know today given that newer vehicles have updated technology which is driving up the cost of replacing those windshields.
Insurance Coverage
Where does insurance fit in with all of this? Regardless of whether you ignored the chip in your windshield or if you took care of it right away, comprehensive coverage on an auto policy will cover the repair or replacement of a windshield (if you have comprehensive coverage on the vehicle involved). What many people don’t know is that insurance companies will waive your deductible for a chip repair. If you need a full replacement, the cost will be subject to your deductible. Carriers waive deductibles for repairs simply because of the cost being much less for a repair versus a replacement.
Comprehensive coverage on a vehicle is often an inexpensive coverage for how much it covers. Collision coverage, as you could probably guess, covers damage due to a collision with another vehicle or property. Comprehensive coverage covers fire, theft, vandalism, falling objects, glass damage, and an impact with an animal. If you have an older vehicle that you don’t want to have full coverage on, it may be worth keeping comprehensive coverage if you believe the cost is worth it.
For an added charge each term, many insurance carriers will offer an additional endorsement on their auto policies for glass coverage. It is often referred to as “Full Glass Coverage” meaning that any covered glass damage requires nothing out of pocket from you. So, no matter if you have a small chip or a large crack in your windshield, your insurance carrier will cover the full cost of repair or replacement with no deductible.
How we help
As always, it’s a great idea to have a conversation with your insurance agent regarding any insurance questions you have. Whether there is coverage for a situation or not, we’ll help you. You’ll get an answer without submitting a claim and hoping for the best. Your CRG agent is always available to give their expert advice and recommend the best way to go about an insurance-related issue.
