If you have at least one kid in your house, there is a good chance that you have experienced at least one broken window in the past - if not, there is probably one in your future. Do you know what to do if a window or glass door is broken in your home? How you clean it up, who replaces it and how you handle the entire situation will all have an impact on the outcome. My site contains tips for dealing with a broken window or glass door in your home. Hopefully, you will be able to learn from my many experiences and avoid the mistakes that I have made.
It's annoying to be driving down the road only to have a stone tossed up and into your windshield, which then gets chipped. Your windshield can also crack due to extreme temperature changes or during an auto accident. Since driving around with a broken windshield impedes your vision and can be dangerous, it's important to have the nick repaired as soon as possible. How can you tell if you should repair or replace the glass? Here are some considerations to keep in mind.
How big is the crack?
A good rule of thumb is that if the crack can be fully covered by a dollar bill (which means that it's fewer than six inches across), replacement might not be necessary. In this case, a repair can add years of life to your windshield. One important thing to remember is that even after a repair, a smudge or other noticeable defect can persist. If this is directly in your line of sight, you might wish that you'd just gotten the glass replaced. Ask your auto glass-repair expert how much of an artifact is likely to remain before making your decision.
Did you already try to fix it yourself?
There are some DIY kits out there that make it simple to repair the glass yourself. Unfortunately, the results of this type of repair are usually not as good as if you had brought it to a professional auto-glass repair specialist. Once you attempt a repair with one of these kits, the only thing that can be done about an unsatisfactory result is a full replacement. A crack can't be re-repaired, so tread cautiously if you try to fix it yourself as a way to save money. You might end up having to replace the windshield anyway, which would raise the amount of your investment.
Are there several small nicks?
If you have more than one or two nicks, you might opt for a windshield replacement. There are two reasons for this. The first is that the more nicks you have repaired, the higher the cost will be; in some cases, it might be more economical to just have the windshield replaced to be done with the project. The second is that if several areas of the windshield are compromised, this can make repairs less likely to hold up over time, and this would cause you to have to pay for a replacement anyway.
What type of auto insurance do you have?
According to Safelite Auto Glass, most insurance companies will cover windshield repair at 100 percent of the cost. This means that you might not have any out-of-pocket expense if you go with this option. On the other hand, if you were to have your windshield replaced, you might have to pay your deductible, which could be hundreds of dollars, depending on your policy. Some insurance companies will consider a glass claim against you when coming up with next year's rates, and others won't.
The best thing to do is ask either your insurance company or your auto-glass specialist what your out-of-pocket costs will be. You can also contact your insurance company directly to find out whether your claim will raise your rates; if the answer is yes, you can opt for the less-expensive repair service or pay the bill yourself without putting a claim through your insurance company.
The most important thing to keep in mind is that auto-glass damage tends to spread, so it's wise to have auto-glass repair or replacement done as soon as possible. Driving around with a small crack for a few days or a few weeks can lead to the crack expanding, which would then make it necessary to replace the glass rather than repair it. In this case, promptness pays.
Share8 September 2016
