windscreen repair

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ItalianTuneUp

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A stone chipped the windscreen a few days ago and I wanted to ask a couple of questions before I get it fixed.

1. Is it a good idea to claim on one's car insurance to cover the cost of repair, or does this raise premiums or have other similar detrimental effect? I think my policy covers this but I need to check.

2. The chip seems fairly deep but it's only about the size of a 1p/5p coin. Any special advice?

3. Which is the best repair company for a quality, lasting repair?
 
It shouldn't affect your insurance premium and your NCB. That applies to windscreen replacement as well.
But just to be on the safe side, speak to your insurance company, they will confirm the conditions, and who you need to contact as they will have their preferred suppliers.
 
It shouldn't affect your insurance premium and your NCB. That applies to windscreen replacement as well.
But just to be on the safe side, speak to your insurance company, they will confirm the conditions, and who you need to contact as they will have their preferred suppliers.

Yes, good advice, I will check with them first.
 
Insurance company (LV) quite vague about whether it will affect premium, so I'll probably get it repaired at my own expense.

Autoglass quoted £64 for repair at a centre or £75 for mobile repair at home.

Does this sound about right?
 
Mine was cracked, insured through Saga so their preferred repairer is AA Windscreens rather than Autoglass, they came to the house and the fitter did a superb job, knew exactly what he was doing and was uber careful not to scratch any paintwork Cost me the £75 glass excess on my insurance policy - I'd guess a replacement windscreen would be many hundreds!

Also, when I called the insurer's glass line to book the replacement, they were extra careful to check things like auto lights, windscrren wipers etc to make sure they brought exactly the correct screen - which they did.

Seriously impressed with the service from AA Windscreens - but maybe I was lucky with the man they sent to do the job!!
 
First and foremost, the size indication suggests that the damage is repairable (it is just the outer layer of glass which is damaged).

Re: insurance. Although it is a separate claim to accident damage, and therefore should not affect your NCD, there are some things to be aware of. For example,


  • Swift Cover (part of AXA) will suspend your NCD for 12 months after a glass claim;
  • many prospective insurers ask for disclosure of a glass claim made within a specified period, therefore you have to consider why they want to know;
  • more and more policies now require a policyholder contribution - or excess - even for stonechip repairs;
  • the above mentioned repairers will ask you to sign a disclaimer which will entitle them to bill your insurance company for a new windscreen if the attempt to repair the damage should fail;
  • AG also have strict criteria for repair and will not repair damage which falls outside of their restrictions (their rules, not necessarily MOT or BS)
  • it can be a bit of a lottery in terms of who the technician is, how much experience he has and whether or not he, or his equipment, is up to the job. But as long as your insurer is saving money by nominating them, eh?
A repair by an acknowledged, or experienced technician is generally better and when you see the difference between a 'contract repair' and one by someone who actually knows what they're doing, it's like comparing night to day. There are an alarming number of repair technicians who do not follow (never mind even understand) some basic yet fundamental principles of laminated windscreen repair; 'drying out' which is a process to remove moisture from within the break is essential yet none of the larger companies do it. Also, many of them will apply heat to the break from behind the glass because they believe it 'helps the resin flow into the crack'. It does not. Heat expands glass, and as it expands, the damage will 'close' and thus block the resin from flowing. So many people have said, "it was alright for a while, but then it re-appeared", that is because the glass cooled down!

A little bit more detail here.
 
Looking at getting this done on the picanto. Your link shows around£100.
How do you get it done for £10?

It's not £10. It'll be much more than that but the balance is paid to the repairer. In my opinion (been in the trade for 20 years) the repair you get from 'them' ain't all that although a lot will depend on the type of damage; some will good and others will look like the same before and after!
 
Just phone them...............

I only ever pay a tenner for my screen repairs with Autoglass.

1. Pick up phone
2. Speak to nice person
3. Give my details and vehicle stuff
4. Arrange time and day
5. Say bye bye to nice person

:)
 
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I looked at the chip in more detail, and it seems that it has a small chip on the surface of the glass no bigger than about 2 to 3 mm across and hardly any depth to the hole (1 mm?) so I'm not sure how repairable it is.

However when you look at the impact area it looks quite bad, so it appears that the impact has gouged out a very small sliver of glass, but has caused damage and glass discolouration under the surface of the glass, if that makes sense.

Glassman, what are your thoughts? I might be able to attach a photo with a ruler next to the chip if that helps.
 
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Just phone them...............

I only ever pay a tenner for my screen repairs with Autoglass.

1. Pick up phone
2. Speak to nice person
3. Give my details and vehicle stuff
4. Arrange time and day
5. Say bye bye to nice person

:)

They mustn't like the sound of my voice then, because they quoted me six our seven times what they charge you.

Are you sure they are not collecting extra funds from your insurer?
 

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