There are few things more annoying than getting a chip in your windshield, especially if it had nothing to do with you — ever had a rock fly from seemingly nowhere and leave its mark on your car? But as much of a nuisance as they are, it might not always be the smart choice to file an insurance claim to cover the damage. We’ll explain exactly what we mean by this on our way to telling you exactly when filing is worth it when it comes to windshield chip claims.
Why Wouldn’t I Want to File a Claim?
Naturally, when something happens to your vehicle – especially, once again, if it’s something that wasn’t your fault – your instinct is to file a claim and let insurance take care of it. That’s why you have it, after all. But you have to keep in mind that every time you file a claim with your provider, it increases the risk that you carry.
Now, one minor windshield chip might not negatively impact you that much, but if you just filed a claim for your windshield last month and it happened again, that establishes a pattern that your agency might not like. A good rule of thumb to consider is whether the cost to repair your windshield chip is going to be more or less than your deductible. If it’s more than your deductible, you can save yourself some money by filing the claim and only paying your deductible. If it’s less than your deductible, insurance isn’t going to help you anyways, so you’d be better off not filing.
Repair the Chip Regardless
Regardless of whether or not you’re going to file a claim, you should get the chip repaired at your earliest convenience. Even the tiniest little nick could end up spreading and webbing into larger cracks that compromise your field of vision and create quite the safety hazard. If you’re able to get the chip fixed early, when it’s still small – smaller than a quarter, generally speaking – then you can usually save yourself some money.
This is because the larger a crack gets the more likely it is to require a full replacement. While chips on the passenger side window might be able to be ignored for a while as they don’t impede your line of sight, every road vibration, moisture infiltration and temperature change can cause it to spread, potentially turning your repair job into a replacement as we mentioned. If seasonal extremes are on the horizon, don’t wait. Act fast and repair the crack before it’s too late.
Weighing the Cost: Out-of-Pocket or Insurance Claim
The typical cost of repairing a chipped windshield can range from $60 to $120, while fully replacing the windshield might cost anywhere from $250 to $1,000 depending on the make and model and whether or not it has sensors for modern advanced safety technologies. So as you can see, if your deductible is $250, then you’ll likely just want to take care of the repairs yourself without filing a claim.
Now you might be asking, what if you don’t have a deductible for glass claims? There are plenty of auto policies out there that cover glass repair under their comprehensive coverage and might not even require a deductible, is it safe to just file every claim? This is where you have to fall back on our advice about repeated claims.
If it’s the first time you’ve ever had to file a glass claim, you should be fine. If it’s been three years since the last time you had a windshield chip, you’ll probably be alright. But if for some reason your windshield is getting cracked every couple months, filing a claim even with your free-glass-replacement policy can lead to increased premiums.
Just use your best judgment! If you’d like some more advice or to discuss a new automotive policy, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us right here at Glover Family Independent Insurance.