You’re driving down the highway minding your own business when it happens. You may see it, or you may not. You will almost always hear it. Someone in front of you drives over a small rock. The friction from the tire lifts the rock from the road surface and hurls it at your car.
Most of the time, it hits your grille or bumper and bounces harmlessly off to who knows where. It didn’t happen that way this time. The rock came blasting straight for your windshield. You hear the pop. The mark on the glass is obvious. Before you can get to a shop to repair the blemish, a crack starts meandering its way across your windshield. Now, it’s official. A new windshield must be installed.
When you get home, you fish around in the glove compartment and find the insurance card. You have comprehensive insurance on your policy so a new windshield is included in your coverage. You may have a deductible or maybe not. Most companies today will give you a windshield without you having to pay the deductible. You will need to either call a claim number on the card or call your agent depending on your company’s requirements.
They will ask you about where and when the event occurred. Many times they will want to know if you got the information about what vehicle flung the rock into your windshield. This is usually to determine if a truck was driving in violation of the tire flap laws. Almost no trucks go without flaps.
Next, they will ask about where the car will be located for the installation or would you prefer to take it to a shop. I always choose to have the replacement done on site. A date and approximate time will be set up. As a rule, the glass company will contact you before arriving to do the work. This gives you a more precise time to look for them. It also gives their worker a better idea of how to locate your vehicle.
They prefer to have the car unlocked, but they can usually do the work without it. The installer will remove your old glass and use a high grade of adhesive to glue your new windshield into place. He will then replace the trim and wipe you new glass clean of finger prints and smudges.
Last, he will replace your rear view mirror. If your car has state or locality stickers, he will try to remove them and apply them to the new windshield. If this isn’t possible, then, he will give you the small piece of glass with the sticker attached.
Some companies want you to sign off that the job was completed while others will just deal directly with the insurance company. Before he leaves, make certain that you have a written copy of the warranty on the craftsmanship of the work in case the new seals leak.