A good number of insurance companies, State Farm included, are now offering glass insurance policies with extremely low deductibles of around $50 (yes, fifty dollars—there is no missing zero there). Quite a lot of consumers are also opting for such policies, and it is quite obvious why. However, there may be a dark side to this low deductible policy that is not immediately apparent, at least not until something happens to a consumer’s vehicle bringing up the question of choosing between a windshield replacement or a windshield repair.
Now in certain cases, insurance companies shall be willing to waive deductibles with windshield repair because it is clearly far cheaper for them to pay for a client’s repair as opposed to his windshield replacement. However, there are also a few companies where this is not the regular procedure. For insurance companies where such is the case, a low deductible may influence a customer to go for a replacement instead of an auto glass repair. It comes down to simple mathematics: if you have a $50 deductible on your glass coverage and your glass technician tells you the repair shall cost $40, you would naturally find it cheaper (at least on your part, and not the insurance company’s) to have your entire windshield taken out and replaced instead of paying the money for the specialist to repair those chips in the shield.
However, there are certain costs that need to be considered here. They are not readily apparent, but they can be perilous. First of all, a windshield replacement is not something you should go for blindly, because it is a labour-intensive procedure that may very easily go wrong. Faulty windshield installations are worse safety hazards than a regular glass chip, and most consumers, quite unfortunately, have neither the repair education nor experience to tell whether a windshield installation has been executed properly. To choose a replacement even when your specialist tells you that you do not actually need it would be to put your car and your family’s road safety in the hands of the glass installer, and you cannot make a decision that weighty just out of a misplaced sense of thriftiness.
Furthermore, windshield replacement can be detrimental to the environment. While there are now companies that are trying to figure out ways to reuse and recycle windshield glass, thousands upon thousands of windshields are still finding their way to the dumpsites each year. It is not encouraged to contribute to this pollution, especially when you can go for the more environment-friendly option of windshield repair. Just remember that windshield replacement is a very serious procedure on your vehicle, comparable to major surgery on the human body: you do not want to subject your automobile to it unless you absolutely have to.
For more auto glass repair information please visit Windshield Replacement Phoenix.
